Centene (NYSE:CNC) Cut to “Underperform” at Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Centene (NYSE:CNC) from a hold rating to an underperform rating in a report issued on Tuesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm currently has $52.00 price objective on the stock, down from their previous price objective of $68.00.

A number of other analysts have also commented on CNC. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Centene from $91.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price objective on Centene from $96.00 to $88.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. StockNews.com cut Centene from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $90.00 target price on shares of Centene in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Centene from $83.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $82.62.

Centene Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE:CNC opened at $58.00 on Tuesday. Centene has a 1 year low of $55.03 and a 1 year high of $81.42. 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 business has a fifty day moving average price of $62.56 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $68.80. The company has a market capitalization of $29.28 billion, a PE ratio of 10.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.46.

Insider Transactions at Centene

In other Centene news, CFO Andrew Lynn Asher acquired 17,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $58.14 per share, with a total value of $1,000,008.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 486,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,305,284.58. This represents a 3.66 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Sarah London bought 4,117 shares of Centene stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $60.80 per share, with a total value of $250,313.60. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 667,229 shares in the company, valued at $40,567,523.20. This trade represents a 0.62 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Centene

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CNC. Harris Associates L P lifted its stake in Centene by 5.7% during the third quarter. Harris Associates L P now owns 26,314,183 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,980,932,000 after purchasing an additional 1,420,825 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Centene by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 23,468,159 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,766,683,000 after purchasing an additional 111,654 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in Centene by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,768,534 shares of the company’s stock valued at $434,255,000 after acquiring an additional 194,566 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased 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 valued at $364,117,000 after acquiring an additional 25,595 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc boosted its stake in shares of Centene by 14.2% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 5,113,759 shares of the company’s stock valued at $339,042,000 after purchasing an additional 636,683 shares during the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.