Virtu Financial LLC Invests $844,000 in Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC)

Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Centene Co. (NYSE:CNC) in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm bought 11,218 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $844,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of CNC. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Centene by 47.9% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,716 shares of the company’s stock worth $313,000 after buying an additional 1,527 shares during the period. Grove Bank & Trust grew its position in Centene by 17.9% during the 2nd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 8,602 shares of the company’s stock worth $570,000 after purchasing an additional 1,307 shares in the last quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky raised its stake in Centene by 459.2% during the 2nd quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 1,096 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 900 shares during the period. Cypress Capital Group boosted its position in shares of Centene by 192.8% in the second quarter. Cypress Capital Group now owns 13,610 shares of the company’s stock worth $902,000 after buying an additional 8,962 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Centene by 0.5% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,491,968 shares of the company’s stock valued at $364,117,000 after buying an additional 25,595 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.63% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Centene news, CEO Sarah London acquired 4,117 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of 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 purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Andrew Lynn Asher bought 17,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price 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 in the company, valued at $28,305,284.58. This trade represents a 3.66 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on CNC. Stephens reduced their price objective on Centene from $75.00 to $73.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Centene from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $90.00 price objective on shares of Centene in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group upgraded shares of Centene from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $79.00 to $80.00 in a report on Friday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Centene from $91.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $81.31.

Centene Stock Up 2.4 %

Shares of CNC stock opened at $59.41 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $62.02 and its 200 day simple moving average is $68.62. Centene Co. has a twelve month low of $55.03 and a twelve month high of $81.42. 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 company has a market capitalization of $29.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.31, a PEG ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.46.

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.