Bellevue Group AG Sells 334,750 Shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

Bellevue Group AG cut its stake in shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) by 79.4% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 86,708 shares of the company’s stock after selling 334,750 shares during the period. Bellevue Group AG’s holdings in Centene were worth $6,527,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Park Place Capital Corp boosted its holdings in Centene by 1,190.0% during the third quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 387 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the last quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Centene by 41.4% in the 2nd quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 468 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. Chris Bulman Inc bought a new position in shares of Centene in the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Riverview Trust Co lifted its holdings in Centene by 154.6% during the second quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 527 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares during the period. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new position in Centene in the second quarter worth $36,000. 93.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Centene news, CEO Sarah London bought 4,117 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were acquired 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $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 the SEC website. Also, CFO Andrew Lynn Asher acquired 17,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $58.14 per share, with a total value of $1,000,008.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer now directly owns 486,847 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $28,305,284.58. This represents a 3.66 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on CNC shares. Barclays lowered their target price on Centene from $97.00 to $91.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Centene from $91.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 4th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Centene from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $78.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Finally, 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. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Centene currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $83.92.

Centene Stock Performance

NYSE:CNC opened at $60.00 on Friday. Centene Co. has a 52-week low of $57.20 and a 52-week high of $81.42. The business’s fifty day moving average is $65.11 and its 200 day moving average is $69.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10. The firm has a market cap of $30.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.42, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.49.

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.