Centene (NYSE:CNC) Trading 3.7% Higher on Analyst Upgrade

Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) was up 3.7% during mid-day trading on Friday after Barclays raised their price target on the stock from $91.00 to $93.00. Barclays currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Centene traded as high as $60.32 and last traded at $60.12. Approximately 2,088,749 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 49% from the average daily volume of 4,078,045 shares. The stock had previously closed at $58.00.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on CNC. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Centene from $83.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on shares of Centene from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Centene from $89.00 to $84.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. UBS Group raised Centene from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $79.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Friday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Centene from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $68.00 to $52.00 in a research note on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $81.31.

Insider Transactions at Centene

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Centene

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Tidal Investments LLC grew its position in Centene by 21.8% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 42,117 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,171,000 after purchasing an additional 7,549 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Centene in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $211,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its stake in Centene by 18.3% during the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 60,155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,528,000 after acquiring an additional 9,287 shares in the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in Centene during the 3rd quarter worth $844,000. Finally, TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Centene by 5.7% during the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 9,229 shares of the company’s stock valued at $695,000 after purchasing an additional 501 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Centene Trading Up 3.7 %

The business’s 50 day moving average is $62.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $68.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.38, a PEG ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

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.