Econ Financial Services Corp Makes New Investment in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

Econ Financial Services Corp purchased a new position in shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 10,106 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $793,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Centene during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Centene during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Centene in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Centene in the 4th quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Access Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Centene during the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Institutional investors own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Christopher J. Coughlin sold 878 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.75, for a total value of $67,386.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 25,504 shares in the company, valued at $1,957,432. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, President Kenneth J. Fasola sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.62, for a total value of $620,960.00. Following the sale, the president now owns 300,357 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,313,710.34. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Christopher J. Coughlin sold 878 shares of Centene stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.75, for a total transaction of $67,386.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 25,504 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,957,432. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Centene Stock Up 0.5 %

NYSE CNC traded up $0.38 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $73.48. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,843,604 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,469,479. The company has a market capitalization of $39.21 billion, a PE ratio of 14.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. Centene Co. has a 52 week low of $60.83 and a 52 week high of $81.42. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $68.95 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $73.66.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.44 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $39.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $36.83 billion. Centene had a net margin of 1.79% and a return on equity of 14.45%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.10 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Centene Co. will post 6.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CNC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Centene from $85.00 to $80.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Baird R W raised Centene to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Robert W. Baird assumed coverage on Centene in a report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $83.00 price target on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $90.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Centene from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $83.00 to $69.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $82.86.

About Centene

Centene Corporation operates as a healthcare enterprise that provides programs and services to under-insured and uninsured families, commercial organizations, and military families in the United States. The company operates through Medicaid, Medicare, Commercial, and Other segments. The Medicaid segment offers health plan coverage, including medicaid expansion, aged, blind, disabled, children's health insurance program, foster care, medicare-medicaid plans, long-term services and support.