Moran Wealth Management LLC Sells 2,863 Shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

Moran Wealth Management LLC lessened its position in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) by 2.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 109,317 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,863 shares during the period. Moran Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Centene were worth $8,229,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in shares of Centene in the 1st quarter worth about $914,080,000. Boston Partners grew its stake in shares of Centene by 0.4% in the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 8,652,177 shares of the company’s stock worth $678,033,000 after acquiring an additional 32,427 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Centene by 0.5% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,491,968 shares of the company’s stock valued at $364,117,000 after buying an additional 25,595 shares during the period. Capital International Investors grew its position in Centene by 60.2% during the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 5,216,486 shares of the company’s stock valued at $409,390,000 after buying an additional 1,959,460 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in Centene by 14.2% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 5,113,759 shares of the company’s stock valued at $339,042,000 after buying an additional 636,683 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on CNC. StockNews.com lowered shares of Centene from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Centene from $80.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their target price on Centene from $96.00 to $88.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on shares of Centene from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $90.00 target price on shares of Centene in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $83.92.

Centene Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CNC opened at $59.10 on Thursday. Centene Co. has a 12 month low of $57.20 and a 12 month high of $81.42. The business has a 50-day moving average of $67.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $70.68. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $29.84 billion, a PE ratio of 10.26, a P/E/G ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 0.49.

Insider Activity at Centene

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

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.