UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Purchases 608,249 Shares of Centene Corporation $CNC

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) by 12.4% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,517,580 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 608,249 shares during the quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned approximately 1.12% of Centene worth $354,173,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MidFirst Bank bought a new stake in shares of Centene in the second quarter worth $32,000. Fiduciary Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Centene in the second quarter valued at about $34,000. DV Equities LLC bought a new position in shares of Centene during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Centene during the second quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Elevation Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Centene by 564.6% in the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 658 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 559 shares during the period. 93.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Centene

In related news, General Counsel Christopher Koster sold 56,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.90, for a total transaction of $3,779,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel owned 248,854 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,648,332.60. This represents a 18.50% decrease 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. 0.37% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Centene from $46.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Centene from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $53.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Raymond James Financial set a $75.00 target price on shares of Centene in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Argus raised shares of Centene from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Centene from $58.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Centene currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $70.05.

Centene Stock Performance

CNC opened at $64.91 on Monday. Centene Corporation has a 1-year low of $28.24 and a 1-year high of $69.36. The company has a market cap of $32.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.22, a PEG ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 1.08. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $65.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $53.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $2.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $1.42. The company had revenue of $53.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $47.64 billion. Centene had a positive return on equity of 12.12% and a negative net margin of 2.51%.Centene’s quarterly revenue was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.16) earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Centene Corporation will post 4.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.