Perpetual Ltd Raises Stake in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

Perpetual Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC - Free Report) by 68.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 36,126 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 14,671 shares during the period. Perpetual Ltd's holdings in Centene were worth $2,189,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Centene during the second quarter worth approximately $325,000. AE Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Centene by 41.0% in the second quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 26,142 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,733,000 after purchasing an additional 7,602 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Centene by 25.0% during the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 52,348 shares of the company's stock worth $3,471,000 after purchasing an additional 10,453 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Centene by 9.2% in the 2nd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 100,489 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,662,000 after buying an additional 8,505 shares during the period. Finally, Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC grew its position in Centene by 21,633.3% in the second quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 6,520 shares of the company's stock worth $432,000 after acquiring an additional 6,490 shares during the period. 93.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Centene

In other Centene news, CFO Andrew Lynn Asher bought 17,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $58.14 per share, with a total value of $1,000,008.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer now directly owns 486,847 shares of the company's stock, valued at $28,305,284.58. The trade was a 3.66 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director H James Dallas acquired 1,693 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $59.01 per share, for a total transaction of $99,903.93. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,693 shares in the company, valued at $99,903.93. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders purchased a total of 45,010 shares of company stock valued at $2,660,276 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Centene Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:CNC traded down $0.10 on Wednesday, hitting $63.56. 3,257,454 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,228,073. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10. Centene Co. has a 1-year low of $55.03 and a 1-year high of $81.42. The firm's 50-day moving average is $60.25 and its 200 day moving average is $67.28. The company has a market capitalization of $32.09 billion, a PE ratio of 11.03, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.45.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on CNC shares. Jefferies Financial Group cut Centene from a "hold" rating to an "underperform" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $68.00 to $52.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price target 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. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on Centene from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Centene from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Centene from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $80.92.

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.