Metis Global Partners LLC Buys 2,063 Shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

Metis Global Partners LLC boosted its stake in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) by 9.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 23,293 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,063 shares during the quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in Centene were worth $1,411,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC boosted its stake in Centene by 75.3% in the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 412 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA raised its holdings in shares of Centene by 75.3% in the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 773 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Centene in the 3rd quarter valued at about $66,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Centene in the 4th quarter valued at about $82,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Centene by 77.3% in the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,163 shares of the company’s stock valued at $88,000 after acquiring an additional 507 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Centene Price Performance

Shares of Centene stock opened at $58.65 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $60.95 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $64.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.45. Centene Co. has a one year low of $55.03 and a one year high of $80.59.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.31. The business had revenue of $40.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.78 billion. Centene had a return on equity of 13.85% and a net margin of 2.03%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.45 EPS. Analysts forecast that Centene Co. will post 6.86 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Centene

In other Centene news, Director Thomas Greco acquired 17,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $59.75 per share, for a total transaction of $1,015,750.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 19,309 shares in the company, valued at $1,153,712.75. This represents a 736.25 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director H James Dallas acquired 1,693 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $59.01 per share, for a total transaction of $99,903.93. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 1,693 shares in the company, valued at approximately $99,903.93. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have acquired 23,693 shares of company stock worth $1,409,954. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. UBS Group raised Centene from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $79.00 to $80.00 in a report on Friday, December 13th. Jefferies Financial Group cut Centene from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $68.00 to $52.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Argus cut Centene from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Centene from $66.00 to $71.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $79.92.

Centene 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.