Of 19 brokerages covering Centene stock, 15 have a Buy or Strong Buy rating and another three rate the shares at Hold. At a price of around $72.40 a share, the implied gain based on a median price target of $100.00 is 38.1%. At the high price target of $110.00, the upside potential is about 51.9%.
The consensus estimate for fourth-quarter revenue is $35.37 billion, down 1.4% sequentially but 8.6% higher year over year. Adjusted EPS are forecast at $0.84, down 35.7% sequentially and by 16.8% year over year. For the 2022 fiscal year, analysts expect Centene to report EPS of $5.74, up 11.4%, on sales of $144.51 billion, up 14.7%.
Centene’s shares trade at 12.6 times expected 2022 EPS, 11.4 times estimated 2023 earnings of $6.37 and 9.9 times estimated 2024 earnings of $7.33 per share. The stock’s 52-week range is $71.94 to $98.53. Centene does not pay a dividend. The total shareholder return for the past year was negative 11.4%.
Linde
Since posting a 52-week low in September, Linde PLC (NYSE: LIN), the world’s largest industrial gas company, has added about 19.6% to its share price. Among the smorgasbord of chemicals the company produces, the most interesting may be green hydrogen. The U.K.-based company’s market cap is nearly $161 billion and its green hydrogen plant near Niagara Falls is expected to begin producing hydrogen in 2025.
No analyst has a Sell rating on the stock, and 22 of the 24 brokerages covering the stock have Buy or Strong Buy ratings. At a share price of around $326.60, the upside potential based on a median price target of $366.00 is 12.1%. At the high target of $402.00, the upside potential is 23.1%.
Linde is expected to report fourth-quarter revenue of $8.48 billion, down 3.6% sequentially but up 2.2% year over year. Adjusted EPS are forecast at $2.89, down 6.84% sequentially and 4.3% higher year over year. For the full year, analysts expect the company to report EPS of $12.02, up 12.5%, on sales of $33.98 billion, up 10.4%.
The stock trades at of 27.2 times expected 2022 EPS, 25.3 times estimated 2023 earnings of $12.92 and 22.8 times estimated 2024 earnings of $12.92 per share. The stock’s 52-week range is $262.47 to $347.30. Linde pays an annual dividend of $4.68 (yield of 1.41%), and total return to shareholders for the past year was 6.38%.
Originally published at 24/7 Wall St.
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