CNC vs ELV vs CI Stock Comparison

Centene, Elevance Health and Cigna Prices as of Oct 26, 2026 Peers: Industry group
CNC Centene Corp
$68.07 +10.1% 1M +99.8% 1Y
Market cap
$34.25B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$202.94B
Div. yield
–
Managed Care Healthcare
2 wins
ELV Elevance Health, Inc.
$431.39 +9.0% 1M +26.0% 1Y
Market cap
$91.09B
P/E
17.7x
Revenue (TTM)
$201.83B
Div. yield
–
Managed Care Healthcare
4 wins
CI Cigna Group
$305.89 +12.4% 1M +1.4% 1Y
Market cap
$78.90B
P/E
12.3x
Revenue (TTM)
$282.38B
Div. yield
0.02%
Managed Care Healthcare
5 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Cigna leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Cigna 5, Elevance Health 4, Centene 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionCNCELVCILeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $34.25B $91.09B $78.90B ELV
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only -6.7x 17.7x 12.3x CI
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 13.5x 14.4x 9.5x CI
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +13.9% +3.6% +7.8% CNC
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months -2.5% 2.5% 2.3% ELV
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital -14.7% 8.3% 10.9% CI
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 2.5x -0.5x 1.9x ELV
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.02% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +99.8% +26.0% +1.4% CNC
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -0.7%/yr -0.1%/yr +7.5%/yr CI
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 47.5% 36.1% 33.9% CI
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 49/100 71/100 67/100 ELV

Percentile Scorecard

CNCELVCI

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisCNCELVCI
Valuation 88 #4 of 25 83 #5 of 25 92 #3 of 25
Growth 35 #16 of 24 26 #18 of 24 57 #11 of 24
Profitability 35 #16 of 24 78 #6 of 24 74 #7 of 24
Financial Health 56 #12 of 26 72 #8 of 26 28 #19 of 26
Shareholder Returns 33 #11 of 16 93 #2 of 16 87 #3 of 16
Overall 49 71 67
  • CNC ranked among 27 companies in Healthcare Payers and Distributors
  • ELV ranked among 27 companies in Healthcare Payers and Distributors
  • CI ranked among 27 companies in Healthcare Payers and Distributors

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodCNCELVCISPY
1 month +10.1%+9.0%+12.4% -0.8%
3 months +6.2%+14.0%+5.1% +3.5%
6 months +56.5%+21.1%+8.2% +7.0%
Year to date +65.4%+23.1%+11.1% +12.2%
1 year +99.8%+26.0%+1.4% +13.0%
3 years +0.9%-2.3%+0.9% +86.3%
3 years, per year +0.3%-0.8%+0.3% +23.1%
5 years -3.5%-0.5%+43.3% +68.6%
5 years, per year -0.7%-0.1%+7.5% +11.0%
10 years +112.9%+247.4%+147.1% +258.0%
10 years, per year +7.8%+13.3%+9.5% +13.6%

Risk

MeasureCNCELVCISPY
Volatility, 1Y 47.5%36.1%33.9% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 47.4%39.4%38.4% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.310.290.15 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 2.100.720.04 1.02
Max drawdown, 5Y -74.1%-51.2%-33.4% -25.4%
From 52-week high -4.4%-3.2%-3.2% -1.8%
52-week high $71.21$445.45$315.88 $779.14
52-week low $31.80$280.74$244.41 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleCNCELVCI
P/E now vs peer median -6.6xmedian 24.3x 18.2xmedian 24.3x 12.5xmedian 24.3x
P/S now vs peer median 0.2xmedian 0.3x 0.5xmedian 0.3x 0.3xmedian 0.3x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median -5.2xmedian 13.5x 9.6xmedian 13.5x 8.3xmedian 13.5x
P/FCF now vs peer median 3.8xmedian 15.6x 14.3xmedian 15.6x 8.9xmedian 15.6x
P/B now vs peer median 1.5xmedian 2.5x 2.1xmedian 2.5x 1.9xmedian 2.5x
PEG now vs peer median 0.11median 1.33 -7.78median 1.33 4.78median 1.33

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsCNCELVCI
Revenue $202.94B $201.83B $282.38B
Gross profit $43.22B $53.35B $58.25B
Operating income -$5.64B $7.70B $9.96B
Net income -$5.10B $5.13B $6.98B
Free cash flow $8.95B $6.51B $9.11B
EPS (diluted) $-10.25 $23.62 $24.31
Cash & equivalents $24.15B $10.35B $6.30B
Total debt $16.11B $30.76B $31.88B
Shares (diluted) 497.64M 217.60M 263.96M
Enterprise value -$56.11B -$51.49B $48.15B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricCNCELVCI
P/E -6.6x 18.2x 12.5x
P/FCF 3.8x 14.3x 8.9x
P/Operating cash flow 3.4x 12.3x 7.9x
P/S 0.2x 0.5x 0.3x
P/B 1.5x 2.1x 1.9x
P/Tangible book 1.8x 2.7x 5.1x
EV/EBITDA -5.2x 9.6x 8.3x
EV/EBIT -4.0x 11.5x 10.6x
EV/Revenue 0.1x 0.4x 0.4x
EV/FCF 2.5x 13.6x 11.6x
EV/Operating cash flow 2.3x 11.6x 10.3x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.11 -7.78 4.78

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCNCELVCI
Revenue growth (1Y) 13.9% 3.6% 7.8%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 11.1% 6.2% 14.9%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 11.2% 4.3% -8.7%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 9.7% 5.5% 0.5%
Operating income growth (1Y) -394.4% -9.2% 10.3%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -61.1% -4.2% 7.0%
Net income growth (1Y) -348.7% -7.4% 29.3%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -57.2% -5.2% 0.8%
EPS growth (1Y) -346.3% -4.5% 29.9%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -59.8% -2.3% 2.6%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 463.5% 54.6% 94.2%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 4.4% -7.2% -7.3%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 728.8% 72.9% 131.1%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 5.4% -7.6% -7.2%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCNCELVCI
Gross margin 21.3% 26.4% 20.6%
EBITDA margin -2.2% 4.6% 4.5%
Operating margin -2.8% 3.8% 3.5%
Pretax margin -2.3% 3.1% 3.1%
Net margin -2.5% 2.5% 2.3%
FCF margin 4.4% 3.2% 3.2%
Operating cash flow margin 4.8% 3.8% 3.6%
Return on equity -23.1% 11.4% 16.4%
Return on assets -6.2% 4.0% 4.5%
Return on invested capital -14.7% 8.3% 10.9%
Return on capital employed -13.6% 9.6% 10.0%
Asset turnover 2.5x 1.6x 1.8x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) -1.9x 1.5x 1.5x
Stock comp / revenue 0.1% 0.1% –

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCNCELVCI
Debt / assets 19.4% 24.1% 20.3%
Debt / equity 0.7x 0.7x 0.7x
Net debt / EBITDA 2.5x -0.5x 1.9x
Debt / FCF 1.8x 4.7x 3.5x
Liabilities / assets 72.7% 65.0% 72.7%
Equity / assets 27.3% 35.0% 27.3%
Interest coverage -8.6x 5.3x –
Current ratio 1.1x 1.5x 0.8x
Quick ratio 1.1x 1.2x 0.7x
Cash ratio 0.7x 0.8x 0.1x
Altman Z-score 2.83 3.07 2.81

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCNCELVCI
Dividend yield – 1.6% 2.0%
Net buyback yield 0.0% 2.2% 1.3%
Shareholder yield 0.0% 3.8% 3.3%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – 23.3%
Payout ratio (FCF) – – 17.8%
Dividend growth (1Y) – – 2.3%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – 4.9%

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusCNCELVCI
Forward P/E 13.5xFY2026 14.4xFY2026 9.5xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $5.04FY2026 $30.04FY2026 $32.34FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +142.3%FY2026 -0.8%FY2026 +8.4%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +11.5% +4.4% +9.8%
Revenue, next fiscal year $202.57BFY2026 $211.76BFY2026 $303.67BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +4.0%FY2026 +7.2%FY2026 +10.5%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after -0.4% -0.1% -6.5%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCNCELVCI
Held by institutions 97.9% 91.8% 89.7%
Institutions holding 999 1,610 1,701
Change in shares held, QoQ +2.1% +1.7% +0.9%
Institutions buying 568 859 837
Institutions selling 334 540 574
Buyers to sellers 1.70 1.59 1.46

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

CNCELVCI
CNC 1.00 0.59 0.40
ELV 0.59 1.00 0.46
CI 0.40 0.46 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, CNC, ELV and CI?

Elevance Health (ELV) is the largest by market capitalisation: Centene (CNC) $34.25B, Elevance Health (ELV) $91.09B, Cigna (CI) $78.90B.

Which stock is cheaper, CNC, ELV and CI?

Cigna (CI) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Centene (CNC) -6.7x, Elevance Health (ELV) 17.7x, Cigna (CI) 12.3x). On next year's consensus earnings, Cigna (CI) is cheapest (Centene (CNC) 13.5x, Elevance Health (ELV) 14.4x, Cigna (CI) 9.5x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Centene (CNC) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Centene (CNC) +13.9%, Elevance Health (ELV) +3.6%, Cigna (CI) +7.8%.

Which company is more profitable?

Elevance Health (ELV) has the highest net margin (Centene (CNC) -2.5%, Elevance Health (ELV) 2.5%, Cigna (CI) 2.3%). On return on invested capital, Cigna (CI) leads (Centene (CNC) -14.7%, Elevance Health (ELV) 8.3%, Cigna (CI) 10.9%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Centene (CNC) returned the most: Centene (CNC) +99.8%, Elevance Health (ELV) +26.0%, Cigna (CI) +1.4%. Over five years, Cigna (CI) compounded fastest (Centene (CNC) -0.7%/yr, Elevance Health (ELV) -0.1%/yr, Cigna (CI) +7.5%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Centene (CNC) 0.00%, Elevance Health (ELV) 0.00%, Cigna (CI) 0.02%. Centene (CNC) and Elevance Health (ELV) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Cigna (CI) has been the steadiest (Centene (CNC) 47.5%, Elevance Health (ELV) 36.1%, Cigna (CI) 33.9%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, CNC, ELV and CI?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Cigna (CI) leads on 5. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.