Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) Shares Sold by Retirement Systems of Alabama

Retirement Systems of Alabama reduced its stake in shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) by 14.4% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 615,939 shares of the company’s stock after selling 103,571 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Centene were worth $46,368,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Harris Associates L P increased its stake in Centene by 5.7% during the third quarter. Harris Associates L P now owns 26,314,183 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,980,932,000 after acquiring an additional 1,420,825 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Centene by 22.9% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 4,461,517 shares of the company’s stock worth $295,799,000 after acquiring an additional 832,318 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in Centene by 14.2% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 5,113,759 shares of the company’s stock worth $339,042,000 after buying an additional 636,683 shares during the last quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Centene by 15.4% in the third 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ raised its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 416,003 shares during the last quarter. 93.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Centene news, CFO Andrew Lynn Asher purchased 17,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $58.14 per share, with a total value of $1,000,008.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer now owns 486,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,305,284.58. The trade was a 3.66 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Sarah London bought 4,117 shares of Centene stock in a transaction dated 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 purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 667,229 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $40,567,523.20. This trade represents a 0.62 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Centene Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE:CNC traded up $0.92 on Friday, hitting $58.92. The company had a trading volume of 245,973 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,070,507. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. Centene Co. has a 1 year low of $55.03 and a 1 year high of $81.42. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $62.28 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $68.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.07, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.46.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on CNC shares. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on shares of Centene from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Centene from $91.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th. StockNews.com lowered Centene from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of Centene from $83.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $90.00 target price on shares of Centene in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $81.92.

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.