Texas Permanent School Fund Corp Sells 22,139 Shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

Texas Permanent School Fund Corp cut its stake in shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) by 20.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 88,344 shares of the company’s stock after selling 22,139 shares during the quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp’s holdings in Centene were worth $5,857,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Centene during the 4th quarter worth $1,325,441,000. Swedbank AB bought a new stake in Centene during the first quarter worth about $914,080,000. Harris Associates L P increased its position in shares of Centene by 172.8% during the 4th quarter. Harris Associates L P now owns 10,863,367 shares of the company’s stock valued at $806,170,000 after purchasing an additional 6,881,450 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners raised its holdings in shares of Centene by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 8,652,177 shares of the company’s stock valued at $678,033,000 after buying an additional 32,427 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in Centene by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,491,968 shares of the company’s stock worth $364,117,000 after buying an additional 25,595 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Centene Stock Performance

Shares of CNC opened at $73.47 on Thursday. Centene Co. has a one year low of $63.45 and a one year high of $81.42. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $73.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $73.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.21 billion, a PE ratio of 14.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.48.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.44 by ($0.02). Centene had a return on equity of 14.45% and a net margin of 1.79%. The firm had revenue of $39.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $36.83 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.10 earnings per share. Centene’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Centene Co. will post 6.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on CNC. Truist Financial reduced their price target on shares of Centene from $92.00 to $89.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Centene from $85.00 to $80.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $90.00 price target on shares of Centene in a research note on Tuesday. Robert W. Baird began coverage on shares of Centene in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $83.00 target price on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Centene from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $85.75.

Centene Company 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.