Wasatch Advisors LP Takes $2.86 Million Position in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

Wasatch Advisors LP acquired a new stake in shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 38,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,861,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in CNC. WR Wealth Planners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Centene by 41.4% during the 2nd quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 468 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Centene by 10.0% during the 2nd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 1,562 shares of the company’s stock valued at $104,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Centene by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,082 shares of the company’s stock valued at $608,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Meridian Management Co. lifted its holdings in Centene by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Meridian Management Co. now owns 64,721 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,291,000 after buying an additional 189 shares in the last quarter. Finally, E Fund Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Centene by 6.4% in the 2nd quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,309 shares of the company’s stock worth $219,000 after buying an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Centene

In other news, CEO Sarah London bought 4,117 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $60.80 per share, for a total transaction of $250,313.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 667,229 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,567,523.20. This trade represents a 0.62 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Andrew Lynn Asher bought 17,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $58.14 per share, with a total value of $1,000,008.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 486,847 shares in the company, valued at $28,305,284.58. The trade was a 3.66 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Centene Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CNC opened at $60.00 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. Centene Co. has a fifty-two week low of $57.20 and a fifty-two week high of $81.42. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $65.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $69.82. The company has a market cap of $30.29 billion, a PE ratio of 10.42, a P/E/G ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.49.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on CNC shares. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Centene from $97.00 to $91.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of Centene from $83.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Centene from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $78.00 target price on shares of Centene in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $90.00 target price on shares of Centene in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $83.92.

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.