Leuthold Group LLC Sells 9,988 Shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

Leuthold Group LLC reduced its stake in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) by 12.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 67,185 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,988 shares during the period. Leuthold Group LLC’s holdings in Centene were worth $4,454,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Centene in the first quarter worth $25,000. WR Wealth Planners LLC grew its stake in Centene by 41.4% in the second quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 468 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares during the period. Chris Bulman Inc bought a new stake in shares of Centene in the second quarter worth about $33,000. Riverview Trust Co raised its position in shares of Centene by 154.6% during the second quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 527 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the period. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new position in shares of Centene during the 2nd quarter valued at about $36,000. Institutional investors own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Centene Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CNC opened at $76.32 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.73 billion, a PE ratio of 15.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.48. Centene Co. has a 52 week low of $63.45 and a 52 week high of $81.42. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $74.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $73.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.17.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last released its 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 net margin of 1.79% and a return on equity of 14.45%. The firm had revenue of $39.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.83 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.10 earnings per share. Centene’s quarterly revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Centene Co. will post 6.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CNC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird started coverage on Centene in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $83.00 target price for the company. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $78.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $90.00 target price on shares of Centene in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Oppenheimer dropped their price target on Centene from $110.00 to $95.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Centene from $93.00 to $91.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 13th. 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $85.58.

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.