Centene (NYSE:CNC) Sets New 1-Year Low on Analyst Downgrade

Shares of Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) hit a new 52-week low on Tuesday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on the stock from $48.00 to $30.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Centene traded as low as $25.86 and last traded at $26.34, with a volume of 2836937 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $26.86.

CNC has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Centene from $68.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered Centene from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $65.00 to $38.00 in a research note on Monday. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Centene from $45.00 to $31.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Barclays decreased their price objective on Centene from $65.00 to $45.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $33.00 price objective (down previously from $73.00) on shares of Centene in a research note on Monday, July 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $45.31.

Insider Transactions at Centene

In other Centene news, Director Theodore R. Samuels II purchased 9,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 28th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $27.62 per share, with a total value of $248,580.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 32,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $883,840. This represents a 39.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Centene

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Pinney & Scofield Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Centene in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Centene in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Centene in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Centene in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Finally, Studio Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Centene during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. 93.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Centene Trading Up 1.1%

The firm has a market capitalization of $12.67 billion, a PE ratio of 6.39, a P/E/G ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.10. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $44.64 and a 200 day moving average of $55.11.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 25th. The company reported ($0.16) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.23 by ($0.39). The company had revenue of $48.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $44.71 billion. Centene had a net margin of 1.15% and a return on equity of 9.57%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 22.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.42 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Centene Corporation will post 6.86 EPS for the current year.

Centene Company Profile

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.