Centene Corp. (NYSE:CNC) is a well diversified, multi-national healthcare company that has been provides a set of services to the government sponsored healthcare programs since 1954.
The Wisconsin-based company has grown substantially in the last three years through acquisitions, partnerships and alliances. The company’s operating performance has been improving consistently over last few years. Financial liquidity has supported the company’s inorganic growth initiatives that have been the main revenue driver till date. Continuous focus on maximizing shareholders value has always made the stock lucrative to investors.
However, Centene suffers from rising level of debts. Consistently surging expenses also remain a major threat for the company. Moreover, Donald Trump’s decision to repeal former President Barrack Obama's Affordable Care Act (ACA), that has casted an air of uncertainty on the medical sector, also remains a major headwind for this company.
Centene has a decent history when it comes to earnings as the company has beaten estimates in three of the last four quarters, making for an average surprise of 7%.
Currently, Centene holds a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), but that could definitely change following its earnings report which was just released. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
We have highlighted some of the key stats from this just-revealed announcement below:
Earnings: Centene beats on earnings. Our consensus called for EPS of $1.06, and the company reported adjusted diluted EPS of $1.12.
Revenue: Operating revenues beat our estimate. Our consensus called for revenues of $11.4 billion, and the company reported revenues of $11.7 billion.
Centene Corporation Price and EPS Surprise
Key Stats to Note:
Managed care membership of 12.1 million, rose 5% over 2016.
Health benefits ratio (HBR) was 87.6% in the first quarter of 2017, compared to 88.7% in the prior year quarter.
Total Operating Expenses of $11.5 billion increased 64.3% over the prior year quarter.
Operating cash flow was $1.25 million in the first quarter of 2017, compared to only $196 million in the last year quarter.
For 2017, Centene expects adjusted earnings per diluted share to be in the range of $4.50- $4.90. Total revenues are expected to be in the range of $46 billion to $46.8 billion.
Check back later for our full write up on this Centene earnings report later!
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Centene Corporation (CNC): Free Stock Analysis Report
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