BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp Trims Holdings in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp decreased its stake in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC - Free Report) by 13.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 89,030 shares of the company's stock after selling 13,406 shares during the quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp's holdings in Centene were worth $6,702,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Wasatch Advisors LP acquired a new stake in shares of Centene in the third quarter valued at about $2,861,000. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position in Centene by 24.6% during the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 28,995 shares of the company's stock worth $2,183,000 after acquiring an additional 5,716 shares during the last quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd boosted its position in Centene by 187.7% during the third quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 82,630 shares of the company's stock worth $6,163,000 after acquiring an additional 53,909 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its position in Centene by 7.9% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 21,919 shares of the company's stock worth $1,650,000 after acquiring an additional 1,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in Centene by 3.5% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,768,534 shares of the company's stock worth $434,255,000 after acquiring an additional 194,566 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.63% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Sarah London bought 4,117 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $60.80 per share, for a total transaction of $250,313.60. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 667,229 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,567,523.20. This represents a 0.62 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Andrew Lynn Asher bought 17,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was bought at an average price of $58.14 per share, with a total value of $1,000,008.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer now owns 486,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,305,284.58. This represents a 3.66 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Centene Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of CNC stock traded down $0.62 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $59.44. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,300,842 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,613,047. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The company has a market capitalization of $30.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.32, a P/E/G ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.46. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $64.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $69.57. Centene Co. has a 1-year low of $57.20 and a 1-year high of $81.42.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CNC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their target price on shares of Centene from $96.00 to $88.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $90.00 target price on shares of Centene in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Centene from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Centene from $97.00 to $91.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and issued a $78.00 price target on shares of Centene in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $83.92.

About Centene

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.