Park Avenue Securities LLC Has $906,000 Holdings in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

Park Avenue Securities LLC cut its holdings in shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) by 6.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 14,950 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,011 shares during the quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC’s holdings in Centene were worth $906,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Park Place Capital Corp increased its stake in shares of Centene by 1,190.0% during the 3rd quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 387 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its stake in shares of Centene by 75.3% during the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 773 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 332 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Centene during the 3rd quarter worth about $66,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Centene by 77.3% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,163 shares of the company’s stock valued at $88,000 after purchasing an additional 507 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Centene by 104.8% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,231 shares of the company’s stock valued at $82,000 after acquiring an additional 630 shares during the period. 93.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Centene Stock Up 2.3 %

Shares of NYSE CNC opened at $63.68 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The firm has a market cap of $32.15 billion, a PE ratio of 11.06, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.45. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $60.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $67.30. Centene Co. has a 12-month low of $55.03 and a 12-month high of $81.42.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on CNC. Stephens dropped their price objective on shares of Centene from $75.00 to $73.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Centene from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $79.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Friday, December 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $75.00 target price (down from $80.00) on shares of Centene in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Centene from $91.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of Centene from $83.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Centene presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.92.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Sarah London acquired 4,117 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $60.80 per share, for a total transaction of $250,313.60. Following the purchase, 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 purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Andrew Lynn Asher acquired 17,200 shares of Centene stock in a transaction 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 purchase, the chief financial officer now directly owns 486,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,305,284.58. This trade represents a 3.66 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders bought a total of 45,010 shares of company stock worth $2,660,276 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

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.