Ellsworth Advisors LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

Ellsworth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) by 3.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 63,218 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,024 shares during the period. Centene accounts for about 1.5% of Ellsworth Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest position. Ellsworth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Centene were worth $4,691,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CNC. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd grew its position in shares of Centene by 23.6% in the 4th quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 1,215,997 shares of the company’s stock worth $90,239,000 after buying an additional 231,931 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas lifted its stake in shares of Centene by 8.2% in the 3rd quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 186,080 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,817,000 after purchasing an additional 14,070 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group lifted its stake in shares of Centene by 30.6% in the 2nd quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 112,264 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,572,000 after purchasing an additional 26,293 shares during the period. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System increased its holdings in Centene by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 677,311 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,653,000 after acquiring an additional 26,833 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pathstone Family Office LLC increased its holdings in Centene by 154.8% in the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Family Office LLC now owns 15,451 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,066,000 after acquiring an additional 9,386 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on CNC. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price target on shares of Centene from $82.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 15th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Centene from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $85.00 target price (down previously from $92.00) on shares of Centene in a report on Thursday, March 21st. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Centene from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 21st. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Centene in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $101.00 target price for the company. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $85.46.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, President Kenneth J. Fasola sold 12,000 shares of Centene stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.07, for a total value of $900,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now owns 235,365 shares in the company, valued at $17,668,850.55. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Centene news, President Kenneth J. Fasola sold 12,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.07, for a total transaction of $900,840.00. Following the sale, the president now owns 235,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,668,850.55. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Lori Jean Robinson sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.41, for a total transaction of $774,100.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,455 shares in the company, valued at approximately $886,731.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Centene Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE CNC traded up $0.13 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $78.48. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,351,966 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,185,080. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $77.08 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $74.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11. Centene Co. has a 1 year low of $60.83 and a 1 year high of $81.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.38.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The company reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.02. Centene had a net margin of 1.75% and a return on equity of 14.26%. The business had revenue of $39.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.16 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.86 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Centene Co. will post 6.75 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.