Centene (NYSE:CNC) Shares Gap Up – Here’s Why

Shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $63.53, but opened at $64.94. Centene shares last traded at $63.82, with a volume of 278,273 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Oppenheimer dropped their target price on shares of Centene from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Jefferies Financial Group cut Centene from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $68.00 to $52.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $75.00 price target (down from $80.00) on shares of Centene in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. UBS Group raised Centene from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $79.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Centene from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $80.92.

Centene Stock Down 0.8 %

The stock has a market cap of $32.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.45. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $60.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $67.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Centene news, Director H James Dallas bought 1,693 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $59.01 per share, for a total transaction of $99,903.93. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 1,693 shares in the company, valued at $99,903.93. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Sarah London purchased 4,117 shares of Centene stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $60.80 per share, for a total transaction of $250,313.60. Following 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 bought a total of 45,010 shares of company stock valued at $2,660,276 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Park Place Capital Corp grew its position 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 buying an additional 357 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA grew its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new stake in shares of Centene in the 3rd quarter valued at about $66,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Centene by 104.8% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,231 shares of the company’s stock worth $82,000 after purchasing an additional 630 shares during the period. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Centene during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $82,000. Institutional investors own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Centene Company 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.