Palisade Capital Management LP Makes New Investment in Centene Corporation $CNC

Palisade Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm bought 92,280 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,923,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Baird Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Centene in the 1st quarter worth about $236,000. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in Centene by 80.0% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 9,710 shares of the company’s stock valued at $527,000 after acquiring an additional 4,315 shares in the last quarter. CW Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Centene by 20.3% in the 2nd quarter. CW Advisors LLC now owns 4,863 shares of the company’s stock valued at $264,000 after purchasing an additional 820 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Centene by 6.1% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 44,945 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,440,000 after purchasing an additional 2,582 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its holdings in shares of Centene by 0.4% during the second quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 231,938 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,590,000 after purchasing an additional 967 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Centene Stock Down 1.1%

Centene stock opened at $64.92 on Wednesday. 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 Corporation has a 1-year low of $28.24 and a 1-year high of $69.36. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $65.08 and its 200-day simple moving average is $52.80. The company has a market capitalization of $32.07 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.22, a P/E/G ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 1.08.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $2.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $1.42. Centene had a positive return on equity of 12.12% and a negative net margin of 2.51%.The company had revenue of $53.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $47.64 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.16) earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Centene Corporation will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Centene

In related news, General Counsel Christopher Koster sold 47,603 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.36, for a total value of $3,111,332.08. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 305,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,957,937.44. This trade represents a 13.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on CNC. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Centene from $39.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $79.00 target price (up from $68.00) on shares of Centene in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Raymond James Financial set a $75.00 price target on shares of Centene in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $80.00 price objective (up from $75.00) on shares of Centene in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Centene from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Centene currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $70.05.

Centene 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.