Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Has $4.21 Million Stake in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its position in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) by 24.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 56,771 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,067 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Centene were worth $4,213,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Operose Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Centene in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Centene in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Coppell Advisory Solutions Corp. acquired a new position in Centene in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in Centene in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Finally, Headinvest LLC purchased a new stake in Centene in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Centene Stock Performance

NYSE:CNC opened at $75.15 on Friday. Centene Co. has a 1 year low of $60.83 and a 1 year high of $81.42. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $76.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $74.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.20 billion, a PE ratio of 15.31, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.38.

Centene (NYSE:CNC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.02. Centene had a net margin of 1.75% and a return on equity of 14.26%. The business had revenue of $39.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.16 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.86 EPS. Centene’s revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Centene Co. will post 6.75 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Centene news, Director Lori Jean Robinson sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.41, for a total value of $774,100.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,455 shares in the company, valued at approximately $886,731.55. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Centene news, Director Lori Jean Robinson sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.41, for a total value of $774,100.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,455 shares in the company, valued at approximately $886,731.55. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, President Kenneth J. Fasola sold 12,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.07, for a total transaction of $900,840.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president now owns 235,365 shares in the company, valued at $17,668,850.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on CNC shares. Barclays started coverage on shares of Centene in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $101.00 target price for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $90.00 target price on shares of Centene in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $85.00 target price (down previously from $92.00) on shares of Centene in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Centene from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Centene from $89.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $85.38.

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.