QV Investors Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

QV Investors Inc. raised its holdings in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) by 48.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 383,522 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 125,465 shares during the period. Centene accounts for 2.4% of QV Investors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. QV Investors Inc.’s holdings in Centene were worth $23,234,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CNC. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Centene by 2.1% in the third quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,082 shares of the company’s stock worth $608,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the period. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Centene by 6.4% in the second quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,309 shares of the company’s stock valued at $219,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares during the last quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Centene by 6.2% during the third quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,722 shares of the company’s stock valued at $280,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares during the period. CX Institutional raised its stake in shares of Centene by 7.3% in the third quarter. CX Institutional now owns 3,919 shares of the company’s stock valued at $295,000 after buying an additional 266 shares during the period. Finally, Forte Capital LLC ADV increased its holdings in Centene by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. Forte Capital LLC ADV now owns 5,320 shares of the company’s stock worth $400,000 after acquiring an additional 275 shares during the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Centene Price Performance

NYSE CNC traded up $1.83 on Monday, reaching $63.66. 1,855,388 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,341,958. Centene Co. has a 12 month low of $55.03 and a 12 month high of $81.42. The stock has a market cap of $32.14 billion, a PE ratio of 11.05, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.45. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $60.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $67.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.10.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Thomas Greco bought 17,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $59.75 per share, with a total value of $1,015,750.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 19,309 shares in the company, valued at $1,153,712.75. This represents a 736.25 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Sarah London purchased 4,117 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $60.80 per share, for a total transaction of $250,313.60. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 667,229 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,567,523.20. The trade was a 0.62 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders acquired 45,010 shares of company stock valued at $2,660,276 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on CNC. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Centene from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Oppenheimer reduced their price objective on shares of Centene from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Stephens cut their price target on Centene from $75.00 to $73.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $90.00 target price on shares of Centene in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded Centene from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $79.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Friday, December 13th. One equities 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $80.92.

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.