Moran Wealth Management LLC Cuts Holdings in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

Moran Wealth Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) by 2.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 109,317 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,863 shares during the period. Moran Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Centene were worth $8,229,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Swedbank AB purchased a new position in Centene in the first quarter worth $914,080,000. Capital International Investors raised its position in shares of Centene by 60.2% in the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 5,216,486 shares of the company’s stock worth $409,390,000 after acquiring an additional 1,959,460 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Centene by 22.9% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 4,461,517 shares of the company’s stock worth $295,799,000 after acquiring an additional 832,318 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc increased its stake in shares of Centene by 14.2% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 5,113,759 shares of the company’s stock worth $339,042,000 after purchasing an additional 636,683 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ increased its stake in shares of Centene by 42.3% during the second quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 1,400,276 shares of the company’s stock worth $92,838,000 after purchasing an additional 416,003 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Andrew Lynn Asher acquired 17,200 shares of Centene stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $58.14 per share, with a total value of $1,000,008.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 486,847 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,305,284.58. This trade represents a 3.66 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Sarah London bought 4,117 shares of Centene stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $60.80 per share, with a total value of $250,313.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 667,229 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,567,523.20. This trade represents a 0.62 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Centene Stock Performance

Shares of Centene stock opened at $59.10 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $67.27 and its 200 day simple moving average is $70.68. The company has a market capitalization of $29.84 billion, a PE ratio of 10.26, a PEG ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. Centene Co. has a 12 month low of $57.20 and a 12 month high of $81.42.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CNC has been the subject of several research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price objective on shares of Centene from $96.00 to $88.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Centene from $91.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 4th. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of Centene from $83.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Centene from $97.00 to $91.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $83.92.

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.