Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. Purchases 9,612 Shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its position in shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) by 20.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 57,063 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,612 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.’s holdings in Centene were worth $3,783,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Centene by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 12,020 shares of the company’s stock valued at $892,000 after acquiring an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Centene by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 13,604 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,068,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the period. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Centene by 5.0% during the 1st quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,316 shares of the company’s stock valued at $260,000 after acquiring an additional 158 shares during the period. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC raised its position in Centene by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 3,910 shares of the company’s stock valued at $307,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in shares of Centene by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 4,543 shares of the company’s stock valued at $357,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Baird R W upgraded shares of Centene to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. StockNews.com raised shares of Centene from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $78.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Barclays raised their price target on Centene from $101.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $90.00 target price on shares of Centene in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $84.36.

Centene Stock Performance

Shares of CNC stock traded up $1.25 on Thursday, hitting $78.28. 1,244,693 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,489,834. Centene Co. has a 1-year low of $60.83 and a 1-year high of $81.42. The company has a market capitalization of $41.77 billion, a PE ratio of 15.31, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.17. The company’s fifty day moving average is $69.75 and its 200 day moving average is $73.70.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 26th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $39.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.83 billion. Centene had a return on equity of 14.45% and a net margin of 1.79%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.10 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Centene Co. will post 6.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Centene 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.