Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Boosts Position in Centene Corporation $CNC

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in shares of Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) by 41.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 43,659 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,685 shares during the quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.’s holdings in Centene were worth $1,797,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of CNC. Addison Advisors LLC increased its position in Centene by 455.6% during the third quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 739 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 606 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. increased its position in Centene by 118.4% during the fourth quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 749 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 406 shares during the last quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. increased its position in Centene by 152.5% during the third quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 1,010 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 610 shares during the last quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Centene during the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new stake in Centene during the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Centene from $39.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Centene from $44.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen raised Centene from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $61.00 price target (up from $55.00) on shares of Centene in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating and set a $47.00 price target (up from $38.00) on shares of Centene in a report on Monday, May 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $59.47.

Centene Stock Performance

NYSE CNC opened at $62.35 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $30.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $48.20 and a 200-day moving average price of $43.31. Centene Corporation has a twelve month low of $25.08 and a twelve month high of $63.50.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $3.37 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.23 by $1.14. The firm had revenue of $49.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $47.53 billion. Centene had a positive return on equity of 5.57% and a negative net margin of 3.25%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.90 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Centene Corporation will post 3.45 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.