Centene Corporation $CNC Shares Sold by Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB

Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB lessened its holdings in shares of Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) by 72.8% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 46,231 shares of the company’s stock after selling 123,769 shares during the period. Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB’s holdings in Centene were worth $1,902,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of CNC. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Centene during the 4th quarter valued at about $332,044,000. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Centene by 76.6% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 14,654,834 shares of the company’s stock valued at $522,885,000 after acquiring an additional 6,356,152 shares during the last quarter. Deerfield Management Company L.P. boosted its position in shares of Centene by 184.0% during the 3rd quarter. Deerfield Management Company L.P. now owns 9,046,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $322,761,000 after acquiring an additional 5,860,630 shares during the last quarter. 8 Knots Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Centene during the 3rd quarter valued at about $186,662,000. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its position in shares of Centene by 32.0% during the 3rd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 8,716,056 shares of the company’s stock valued at $310,989,000 after acquiring an additional 2,111,674 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Centene Stock Up 2.6%

CNC stock opened at $65.18 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $51.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $44.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.96, a PEG ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 1.09. Centene Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $25.08 and a fifty-two week high of $66.55.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $3.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.23 by $1.14. The firm had revenue of $49.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $47.53 billion. Centene had a positive return on equity of 5.57% and a negative net margin of 3.25%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.90 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Centene Corporation will post 3.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CNC has been the topic of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Centene in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Centene from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “sell” rating and issued a $40.00 target price on shares of Centene in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Centene from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $47.00 price target (up from $38.00) on shares of Centene in a research note on Monday, May 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $60.24.

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.