Centene (NYSE:CNC) Issues FY 2026 Earnings Guidance

Centene (NYSE:CNC) issued an update on its FY 2026 earnings guidance on Thursday morning. The company provided EPS guidance of 3.000- for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of 2.990. The company issued revenue guidance of -.

Centene Stock Performance

Shares of CNC stock traded up $0.26 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $37.54. The stock had a trading volume of 3,653,529 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,604,599. Centene has a twelve month low of $25.08 and a twelve month high of $64.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.46 billion, a PE ratio of -2.76, a PEG ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.59. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $38.78 and its 200 day moving average is $38.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.10.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 6th. The company reported ($1.19) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.22) by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $49.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $48.41 billion. Centene had a positive return on equity of 4.25% and a negative net margin of 3.43%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.80 earnings per share. Centene has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.000-3.000 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Centene will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Centene from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, February 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on Centene from $32.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Mizuho set a $41.00 price objective on Centene and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating and set a $59.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Centene from $45.00 to $41.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $41.81.

Institutional Trading of Centene

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Kestra Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Centene by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 52,602 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,165,000 after buying an additional 264 shares during the last quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors increased its holdings in shares of Centene by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 7,465 shares of the company’s stock worth $307,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Affinity Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Centene by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Affinity Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,927 shares of the company’s stock worth $450,000 after purchasing an additional 316 shares in the last quarter. Snowden Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in Centene by 8.0% during the 2nd quarter. Snowden Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,073 shares of the company’s stock worth $275,000 after purchasing an additional 374 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in Centene by 29.8% during the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,897 shares of the company’s stock worth $103,000 after purchasing an additional 435 shares in the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Centene Company Profile

Centene Corporation (NYSE: CNC) is a diversified, multi-national healthcare enterprise that specializes in providing services to government-sponsored and national health programs. The company primarily acts as a managed care organization, delivering healthcare coverage and administering benefits for Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), Medicare Advantage, and individual marketplace plans. Centene also contracts with federal and state agencies to manage specialty care programs and community-based services for vulnerable populations.

Centene’s offerings extend beyond traditional insurance to include a range of specialty and support services.