Insider buying last 90 days
No open-market insider purchases were filed for CNC in the last 90 days.
From Form 4 filings, dated to when each was filed.
Every CNC insider filing, plotted on the chart in Gekko.Open CNC in Gekko
NYSE: CNC
Centene (CNC) Stock Analysis & Forecast
$65.11−1.99 (−3.0%)
Close on Sep 18, 2026. Page updated Sep 19, 9:16 pm ET.
Gekko Brief
AI summaryCentene closes at $65.11, down 3% on the day, with the close sitting between its 50-day average of $65.50 and 200-day average of $51.62. The GekkoIndex reads 58.1, placing the stock in the Neutral zone. Shares trade 23.2% below the Gekko Fair Value estimate of $84.74. Over the past year the stock has returned 103.3%, with the past six months up 83%.
Coverage this week centers on Centene's turnaround narrative and its ACA and Medicaid positioning. Commentary points to profitability recovery in the second quarter of 2026, with adjusted EPS rising sharply year over year, alongside continued membership pressure in Medicaid. At the Deutsche Bank 2026 Healthcare Summit, Centene reiterated 2026 adjusted diluted earnings guidance of more than $4.80, citing steady trends and a focus on margins over growth. Separate coverage compares Centene's diversified market presence and cash generation against Oscar Health, and other pieces discuss rising employer health costs heading into 2027 and a technical breakout setup for the shares.
Centene's next earnings report is scheduled for 27 October 2026, before the open, 37 days away and outside a typical 20-trading-day holding window. Its last report, on 28 July 2026, beat estimates with EPS of $2.51 against a $0.89 estimate, though shares reacted by -3.5% at the time; the average absolute reaction across recent quarters has run 6%. Analyst coverage stands at 6 buy and 9 hold ratings among 15 firms, with a consensus target of $71.78. Seasonally, the next 20 trading days have averaged -0.7% over five years, rising in 2 of them.
Written by AI and checked automatically against the figures on this page. Generated Sep 20, 2026 from the data above.
Price vs fair value
Close $65.11200-day averageGekko Fair Value $84.74
Key stats
- Market cap
- $32.16B
- P/E ratio
- —
- Forward P/E
- 11.9
- EPS, TTM
- −$10.36
- Revenue, TTM
- $180.3B
- Profit margin
- -2.8%
- Dividend yield
- —
- Beta
- 1.11
- Volume
- 13.44M avg 4.64M
- 1-year return
- +103.3%
- Typical daily move
- ±3.9%
- Typical 20-day move
- ±5.8%
- 50-day average
- $65.50
- 200-day average
- $51.62
- Next earnings
- Oct 27 before open
- Shares outstanding
- 494.0M
Centene swing-trade checklist
Centene scores 2 supportive, 2 mixed and 1 headwind across the 5 checklist items with data.
Six things swing traders check before a 20-day hold, read from the latest data.
2 supportive2 mixed1 headwind
- Trendmixed
Averages disagree
Close $65.11 sits between the 50-day ($65.50) and 200-day ($51.62) averages, or the averages disagree.
See the chart - GekkoIndexmixed
58.1, Neutral
Reading 58.1 is in the Neutral zone.
See the GekkoIndex - Fair valuesupportive
23.2% below
Price is 23.2% below Gekko Fair Value (more than 5% below).
See fair value - Smart moneyno data
No data
No insider, Congress or unusual options activity in the window.
See smart money - Earnings risksupportive
Reports in 37 days
Next report Oct 27, 2026, 37 days away — outside a typical 20-trading-day hold.
See earnings - Seasonalityheadwind
−0.7% on average
From this point in the calendar, the next 20 trading days averaged −0.7% over 5 years, rising in 2 of them.
See seasonality
A description of current data, not a recommendation. How this page works
Centene stock chart and price history
Centene closed at $65.11 on Sep 18, 2026, +103.3% over the past year, inside a 52-week range of $31.63 to $69.63.
Close50-day average200-day averageVolume
Use the left and right arrow keys to read daily values.
Performance Breakdown
- 1 month
- +0.6%
- 3 months
- +6.7%
- 6 months
- +83.0%
- 1 year
- +103.3%
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About Centene
Centene provides managed care programs and services aimed at under-insured families and commercial organizations across the United States. It is known for administering health coverage tied to government assistance programs, alongside offerings for individuals and employer groups, making it a point of access to healthcare products, prescription drug plans, and related medical services.
The company is structured into four segments. Its Medicaid segment covers programs such as needy family assistance, Medicaid expansion, coverage for aged, blind, or disabled individuals, children's health insurance, long-term care support, foster care, and combined Medicare-Medicaid plans, along with broader healthcare products. The Medicare segment handles special needs plans, supplement plans, and prescription drug coverage. The Commercial segment supplies marketplace health insurance for individuals and groups, while the Other segment runs clinical care operations, pharmacies, vision, dental, behavioral health, and centralized support services. Care is delivered through networks of primary and specialty physicians, hospitals, behavioral health practitioners, and other ancillary providers.
Centene was founded in 1984 and is based in Saint Louis, Missouri. Its shares are listed on the NYSE under the ticker CNC.
- Listed
- NYSE
- Sector
- Health services
- Industry
- Managed health care
- Website
- centene.com
Centene GekkoIndex: the smart money zone
Centene’s GekkoIndex — Gekko’s 0 to 100 smart money score — reads 58.1, in the Neutral zone, up 1.7 points over five sessions.
58.1Neutral
Up 1.7 points over five sessions.
Reading for Sep 18, 2026
What followed past readings in each zone
| Zone | Readings | 5 days | 20 days | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buying | 60 | −1.5% | +1.0% | ||
| Accumulation | 217 | +0.4% | −0.8% | ||
| Neutral (current zone) | 351 | +0.2% | +1.7% | ||
| Distribution | 29 | +0.7% | +0.5% | ||
| Selling | 5 | Too few readings yet | |||
Average CNC share-price change over the trading days after each daily reading in its GekkoIndex history. Across every stock Gekko tracks, Neutral readings averaged +1.2% over 20 days. Past behaviour doesn’t guarantee future results.
Neutral zone: No clear directional signal. About the five zones →
See every daily GekkoIndex reading plotted over the CNC price, zone by zone.Track CNC in Gekko
Is Centene stock overvalued? Gekko Fair Value
Centene trades 23.2% below Gekko Fair Value of $84.74, so the shares are undervalued on Gekko’s estimate.
Gekko’s own estimate of what Centene shares are worth, recalculated every trading day.
$84.74
Gekko Fair Value, Sep 19, 2026
23.2% Undervalued
Gekko Fair Value on every chart, with the gap to price updating daily.Open CNC in Gekko
Centene insider and Congress trading
No open-market insider purchases were filed for Centene, and no Congress trades were disclosed, in the last 90 days.
Plus buybacks, unusual options and fund positions, each dated to when it became public.
Congress trades last 90 days
No trades in CNC were disclosed by members of Congress in the last 90 days.
From congressional disclosures, which report amounts as ranges.
Congress disclosures for CNC, plotted on the chart in Gekko.Open CNC in Gekko
Buybacks
Centene has been buying back its own shares.
- Bought back, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
- $4.00M
- As a share of market cap
- 0.01%
From company filings.
Hedge funds and billionaires quarter ended Jun 30
2of the funds Gekko tracks hold CNC.
0added0opened2trimmed1sold out
Which funds are on each side, name by name.Unlock in Gekko
Centene earnings: next date and track record
Centene reports on Oct 27, 2026, before the open (37 days away), and beat the EPS estimate in 6 of its last 8 reports.
Next earnings report
Oct 27, 2026
Expected before the open, 37 days away
- EPS estimate
- $0.07
- Revenue estimate
- $47.11B
6 of 8reports beat the EPS estimate
±6%average move across the report
3 of 8reports followed by a gain
Share-price move across each report
Last earnings call, Jul 28, 2026 AI summary
- What they said
- Centene's Q2 2026 earnings call highlighted a strong quarter with premium and service revenue of $44.4 billion and adjusted diluted EPS of $2.51, which beat prior expectations. Management raised full-year 2026 adjusted diluted EPS guidance to greater than $4.80 (from greater than $3.40), driven by underlying business strength and favorable marketplace and Medicare risk adjustment settlements in the quarter. Consolidated HBR improved to 89.6% in Q2 (down from 93% in Q2 2025). Medicaid results were broadly in line with expectations with disciplined execution, though membership attrition was slightly larger than expected (ending Q2 at ~12.1 million). Major cost drivers remain behavioral health, home health, and high-cost drugs, but management cited progress in behavioral health management and payment integrity. Rates (7/1 cohort) came in better than expected, lifting full-year composite rate forecast from ~4.5% to ~5%. Management reiterated multi-year margin restoration efforts, enterprise optimization initiatives (including SG&A controls, workforce actions), and targeted AI/data investments focused on high-ROI use cases. They noted certain nonrecurring favorable items amounting to roughly $0.50 of EPS in Q2 tied to 2025 settlements that are not expected to recur in 2027. The company expressed constructive state conversations on rates but flagged policy headwinds tied to OB3/work requirement-related actions, potential enrollment impacts, and ongoing legal uncertainty in the ACA marketplace.
- Guidance
- Raised full-year 2026 adjusted diluted EPS to > $4.80 (up from > $3.40). Full-year Medicaid HBR expected around 93.5% (previous 93.7%); consolidated HBR Q2 was 89.6%. Full-year composite rate impact now expected ~5% (up from ~4.5%). Exchange/Marketplace pretax margin guidance improved to 4.5%-5% (midpoint 4.75%). PDP expected >3% margin. Management noted approximately $0.50 of Q2 EPS was linked to 2025 settlements unlikely to recur in 2027 and flagged this as a reconciling item for future year bridging.
- Risks flagged
- Membership attrition (notably expansion population) and higher acuity among remaining members; policy and regulatory uncertainty related to OB3/work requirements, provider tax reform, and waiver/budget neutrality changes; litigation and legal uncertainties in the ACA marketplace; potential revenue reconciliation/eligibility verification impacts; nonrecurring settlement-driven EPS items that may not repeat in 2027.
| Reported | EPS | Revenue | Move |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 28, 2026 | $2.51 est $0.89 | $53.58B est $47.64B | −3.5% |
| Apr 28, 2026 | $0.00 est $2.18 | — | +24.1% |
| Feb 6, 2026 | −$1.19 est −$1.22 | $49.73B est $48.41B | −4.7% |
| Oct 29, 2025 | $0.50 est −$0.14 | $49.69B est $47.72B | +5.5% |
| Jul 25, 2025 | −$0.16 est $0.11 | $48.74B est $44.14B | +0.4% |
| Apr 25, 2025 | $2.90 est $2.52 | $46.62B est $42.76B | −3.4% |
| Feb 4, 2025 | $0.80 est $0.49 | $40.81B est $39.36B | −6.3% |
| Oct 25, 2024 | $1.62 est $1.41 | $42.02B est $37.93B | 0.0% |
“Move” is the close of the first session after the report compared with the close of the last session before it, so it reads the same whether the company reported before the open or after the close.
Centene stock forecast and analyst price targets
Analysts’ average 12-month price target for Centene is $71.78, +10.2% from the last close, from 15 firms rating the stock in the last 90 days.
$71.78consensus 12-month target, +10.2% from the last close
Now $65.11Avg $71.78
Low $65High $80
Each firm’s latest rating in the last 90 days: 15 firms.
Latest analyst actions
| Date | Firm | Target | vs price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 17 | Barclays | $80 | +22.9% |
| Sep 15 | Wells Fargo | $69 | +6.0% |
| Sep 11 | Bank of America Securities | $80 | +22.9% |
| Sep 9 | Bernstein | $79 | +21.3% |
| Sep 4 | Bernstein | $79 | +21.3% |
+1.7%average 20-day move after past Neutral readings
−0.7%average move over the next 20 trading days in the last 5 years
±3.9%typical daily move, from the 14-day average range
Gekko doesn’t publish price predictions. These are analyst targets and historical base rates, which don’t guarantee future results.
Centene seasonality: the next 20 trading days
Over the next 20 trading days from Sep 19, Centene averaged −0.7% across the last 5 years, rising in 2 of them.
Next 20 trading days, by year
Average move and hit rate
| Window | Average | Years higher |
|---|---|---|
| Next 5 trading days | +0.2% | 2 of 5 |
| Next 10 trading days | +1.8% | 2 of 5 |
| Next 15 trading days | −0.5% | 2 of 5 |
| Next 20 trading days | −0.7% | 2 of 5 |
| Next 30 trading days | +1.2% | 4 of 5 |
For scale, CNC’s typical 20-trading-day move in either direction is about 5.8%.
Centene market cap and key statistics
Centene’s market cap is $32.16B and revenue of $180.3B over the last twelve months.
Valuation
- Market cap
- $32.16B
- Forward P/E
- 11.9
- EPS, TTM
- −$10.36
- Gekko Fair Value
- $84.74
Trading
- Volume
- 13.44M
- Avg volume, 20 days
- 4.64M
- 52-week high
- $69.63
- 52-week low
- $31.63
- Shares outstanding
- 494.0M
Financials
- Revenue, TTM
- $180.3B
- Profit margin
- -2.8%
- Return on equity
- -20.4%
- Quarterly earnings growth, YoY
- +18.3%
Risk and income
- Beta
- 1.11
- Typical daily move
- ±3.9%
- Typical 20-day move
- ±5.8%
Centene stock news this week
Coverage of Centene this week reads positive: 10 positive, 1 neutral and 0 negative headlines.
- Employer Health Costs Surge: What it Means for EHTH, CNC & UNHTradingView, Sep 18
- Is Centene (CNC) Stock Undervalued Right Now?Zacks Investment Research, Sep 18
- Centene Corp (NYSE:CNC) Breakout Setup Highlighted by Strong Technical Trend and ConsolidationChartMill, Sep 18
- Can Centene Sustain Its Turnaround Amid Membership Pressure?Yahoo Finance Singapore, Sep 17
- Centene Corporation Officer Reports RSU Tax Withholding Transaction on September 15, 2026Kalkine Media, Sep 16
- Centene Corporation (CNC) Presents at Deutsche Bank 2026 Healthcare Summit TranscriptSeeking Alpha, Sep 16
Centene peers
Centene’s 6 largest industry peers by market value, with today’s move, GekkoIndex zone and gap to Gekko Fair Value.
| Stock | GekkoIndex zone | vs Fair Value |
|---|---|---|
| UNHUnitedHealth | Accumulation | 0.2% below |
| ELVElevance Health | Neutral | 33.5% below |
| CICigna | Accumulation | 37.8% below |
| HUMHumana | Accumulation | 24.5% below |
| MOHMolina Healthcare | Neutral | 40.3% below |
| OSCROscar Health | Neutral | 0.5% below |
A peer links to its own page where one exists.
Centene stock FAQ
What is Centene’s market cap?
Centene’s market cap is $32.16B at the Sep 18, 2026 close of $65.11, with 494.0M shares outstanding.
What is the Centene stock forecast?
The consensus analyst 12-month price target for Centene is $71.78, +10.2% from the last close. Of the 15 firms that rated the stock in the last 90 days, 6 rate it a buy, 9 a hold and 0 a sell. Gekko doesn’t publish price predictions of its own.
Is Centene stock overvalued or undervalued?
On Gekko’s estimate Centene is undervalued: the Sep 18, 2026 close of $65.11 is 23.2% below Gekko Fair Value of $84.74. Gekko Fair Value is recalculated every trading day, and a gap inside 5% either way counts as about fair value.
When does Centene report earnings next?
Centene is expected to report on Oct 27, 2026, before the market opens (37 days away). Analysts expect earnings of $0.07 per share on revenue of $47.11B. Centene beat the earnings estimate in 6 of its last 8 reports, moving 6% on average across the report.
What is Centene’s 52-week high and low?
Centene’s 52-week high is $69.63 and its 52-week low is $31.63; it closed at $65.11 on Sep 18, 2026, +103.3% over the past year.
Is Centene stock a buy right now?
Gekko describes the data; it does not make buy or sell recommendations. On the swing-trade checklist, 2 of the 5 items with data read as supportive (fair value and earnings risk), 2 as mixed (trend and gekkoindex) and 1 as a headwind (seasonality). The checklist is a description of current data, not a recommendation.
How this page works
Prices and signals update after every US market close; the GekkoIndex, Gekko Fair Value and the checklist are Gekko’s own, and the Gekko Brief is written by AI from this page’s data and checked against it before it is published. How Gekko’s data works →
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