National Bank of Canada FI Has $51.20 Million Stock Holdings in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

National Bank of Canada FI grew its holdings in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) by 21.6% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 680,079 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 120,866 shares during the quarter. National Bank of Canada FI’s holdings in Centene were worth $51,196,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Harris Associates L P increased its position in Centene by 5.7% in the 3rd quarter. Harris Associates L P now owns 26,314,183 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,980,932,000 after buying an additional 1,420,825 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Centene by 22.9% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 4,461,517 shares of the company’s stock valued at $295,799,000 after buying an additional 832,318 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its position in 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 buying an additional 636,683 shares in the last quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC increased its position in Centene by 15.4% in the 3rd quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 3,203,049 shares of the company’s stock valued at $241,126,000 after buying an additional 428,100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ increased its position in Centene by 42.3% in the 2nd quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 1,400,276 shares of the company’s stock valued at $92,838,000 after buying an additional 416,003 shares in the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Centene

In other news, CFO Andrew Lynn Asher acquired 17,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $58.14 per share, for a total transaction of $1,000,008.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer now 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 purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Sarah London acquired 4,117 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $40,567,523.20. The trade was a 0.62 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Centene Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CNC opened at $56.76 on Friday. Centene Co. has a twelve month low of $56.44 and a twelve month high of $81.42. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $63.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $69.21. The company has a market capitalization of $28.66 billion, a PE ratio of 9.85, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Centene from $83.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Centene from $91.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Centene from $97.00 to $91.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. StockNews.com lowered Centene from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price objective on Centene from $96.00 to $88.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $83.92.

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.