Kennondale Capital Management LLC Has $1.75 Million Stock Position in Centene Corporation $CNC

Kennondale Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) by 500.0% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 48,978 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 40,815 shares during the quarter. Centene accounts for 1.3% of Kennondale Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest position. Kennondale Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Centene were worth $1,748,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd lifted its stake in Centene by 66.0% in the third quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 85,232 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,041,000 after acquiring an additional 33,875 shares during the last quarter. Packer & Co Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Centene in the 3rd quarter valued at about $50,487,000. ARGA Investment Management LP acquired a new stake in Centene in the 3rd quarter valued at about $21,485,000. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. grew its holdings in Centene by 122.5% during the third quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 223,157 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,962,000 after purchasing an additional 122,870 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi increased its position in Centene by 6.2% during the second quarter. Amundi now owns 3,384,752 shares of the company’s stock worth $183,724,000 after buying an additional 199,016 shares during the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Centene Trading Down 0.7%

CNC stock opened at $44.56 on Tuesday. Centene Corporation has a 52 week low of $25.08 and a 52 week high of $66.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $42.93 and its 200 day simple moving average is $37.76. The company has a market capitalization of $21.91 billion, a PE ratio of -3.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.48.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last announced its earnings results on Friday, February 6th. The company reported ($1.19) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.22) by $0.03. Centene had a negative net margin of 3.43% and a positive return on equity of 4.25%. The firm had revenue of $49.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $48.41 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.80 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 21.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Centene has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.000-3.000 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Centene Corporation will post 6.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on CNC. Wells Fargo & Company set a $44.00 target price on Centene and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Argus raised shares of Centene to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of Centene from $32.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Centene from $28.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Centene from $38.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Centene presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $42.00.

About Centene

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.