Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) Receives $295.94 Average PT from Brokerages

Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) has earned an average rating of “Hold” from the nineteen brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, nine have given a hold recommendation and eight have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $295.9444.

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Humana in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Humana in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Bank of America boosted their target price on Humana from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Wall Street Zen lowered Humana from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, Mizuho increased their price target on Humana from $300.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 9th.

Humana Stock Performance

Shares of Humana stock opened at $245.77 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $29.56 billion, a PE ratio of 18.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.95 and a current ratio of 1.95. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $263.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $256.66. Humana has a one year low of $206.87 and a one year high of $315.35.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The insurance provider reported $3.24 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.95 by $0.29. Humana had a net margin of 1.28% and a return on equity of 13.67%. The business had revenue of $32.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.99 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $4.16 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Humana will post 16.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Humana Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 30th. Investors of record on Friday, December 26th will be paid a $0.885 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 26th. This represents a $3.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. Humana’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.18%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in HUM. Capital International Investors purchased a new stake in shares of Humana during the third quarter valued at $707,670,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in Humana by 273.2% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,488,261 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $907,541,000 after acquiring an additional 2,553,509 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Humana during the 2nd quarter worth about $397,079,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Humana by 8.9% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,972,872 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,697,222,000 after purchasing an additional 1,143,662 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Humana by 3,257.5% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,162,600 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $307,624,000 after purchasing an additional 1,127,973 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.38% of the company’s stock.

Humana Company Profile

Humana Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides medical and specialty insurance products in the United States. It operates through two segments, Insurance and CenterWell. The company offers medical and supplemental benefit plans to individuals. It has a contract with Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to administer the Limited Income Newly Eligible Transition prescription drug plan program; and contracts with various states to provide Medicaid, dual eligible, and long-term support services benefits.