Centene Corporation

This data does not include any forensic scores for Centene, so no Beneish M-Score, Piotroski F-Score, Altman Z-Score, or Fog Index reading can be reported here. Readers should not treat the absence of scores as a clean bill of health; it simply means these screens are not part of this analysis. The financial facts that are on file point to a sharp deterioration. Revenue grew about 20.0% from 2024 to 2025, yet operating income moved from a $3.17 billion profit to a $7.62 billion loss. Management's narrative in the first-quarter 2026 filing focuses on investments, debt-related market risk, and capital returns rather than on the 2025 operating loss, so the explanation for the swing is not contained in the excerpts provided. The capital return disclosures are specific. The repurchase authorization is $10.0 billion, of which $1.8 billion remained available as of March 31, 2026, and the program has no set duration and can be discontinued at any time. In the first quarter of 2026, the filing reports 866 thousand shares in total purchased, but footnote (1) describes 886 thousand shares relinquished by employees for tax payments. That is a 20 thousand share discrepancy within the same table, which a careful reader may want to check against the full filing. The Item 4 conclusion that disclosure controls were effective is noted, along with the statement that there were no changes in internal control over financial reporting during the quarter. Readers may want to look at the consolidated statements of operations and cash flows in the 10-K and 10-Q to trace how the 2025 loss arose and whether it reflects one-time or recurring items.

Catalyst.The filings show revenue of $174.58 billion for 2025, up from $145.5 billion in 2024, an increase of about 20.0%. The MD&A excerpt supplied for the first quarter of 2026 does not explain the operating drivers behind that growth, so the reasons are not established by this data. The risk factor summary points to government programs, Medicare, and prescription drug plan operations as central to the business. The first-quarter 2026 10-Q states there were no material changes to the risk factors in the 2025 Form 10-K. Readers may want to look at the full 2025 MD&A to see which segments and programs drove the increase.

Hidden risk.The most easily missed tension is the swing from profit to loss. Operating income was $3.17 billion in 2024 but a loss of $7.62 billion in 2025, a change of $10.79 billion, even as revenue grew. The risk factor summary cites medical cost trends, risk-adjustment payments that can be retroactively adjusted, and government contract audits as material risks. Separately, investments totaled $20.5 billion at March 31, 2026, made up of $2.5 billion short-term and $18.0 billion long-term. A hypothetical 1% rise in market interest rates would reduce the fair value of fixed income investments by about $636 million.