Freedom Investment Management Inc. Sells 12,272 Shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

Freedom Investment Management Inc. decreased its position in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) by 81.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,757 shares of the company’s stock after selling 12,272 shares during the quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Centene were worth $208,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake 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 acquiring an additional 832,318 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in Centene by 14.2% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 5,113,759 shares of the company’s stock worth $339,042,000 after purchasing an additional 636,683 shares during the last quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ grew its position in Centene by 42.3% in the second quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 1,400,276 shares of the company’s stock valued at $92,838,000 after purchasing an additional 416,003 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Centene by 8.9% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,707,648 shares of the company’s stock valued at $312,150,000 after buying an additional 385,426 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in Centene by 133.7% during the 2nd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 559,213 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,539,000 after buying an additional 319,927 shares in the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on CNC shares. 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. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $78.00 price target on shares of Centene in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on Centene from $83.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Centene from $97.00 to $91.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $90.00 price target on shares of Centene in a research note 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. According to data from MarketBeat, Centene presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $83.92.

Centene Stock Performance

CNC opened at $60.00 on Monday. 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 business has a fifty day simple moving average of $65.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $69.82. Centene Co. has a 1 year low of $57.20 and a 1 year high of $81.42. The company has a market capitalization of $30.29 billion, a PE ratio of 10.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.49.

Insider Activity

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

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.