Humana Inc. $HUM Shares Sold by National Pension Service

National Pension Service decreased its stake in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 178,391 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 6,442 shares during the period. National Pension Service owned 0.15% of Humana worth $70,860,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new stake in Humana in the second quarter worth $14,142,000. Cidel Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Humana by 1.1% in the second quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,883 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,542,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Humana during the second quarter valued at $205,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Humana during the second quarter valued at $441,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Humana by 10.7% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 3,514 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,396,000 after acquiring an additional 340 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.38% of the company’s stock.

Humana Stock Performance

HUM stock opened at $408.79 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $49.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.67, a PEG ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $388.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $303.54. Humana Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $163.11 and a fifty-two week high of $428.88. The company has a quick ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The insurance provider reported $7.61 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.27 by $0.34. Humana had a net margin of 0.88% and a return on equity of 11.20%. The firm had revenue of $40.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $40.58 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $6.27 EPS. Humana’s quarterly revenue was up 26.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Humana Inc. will post 9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Humana Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 27th. Investors of record on Friday, October 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.885 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 30th. This represents a $3.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Humana’s payout ratio is presently 33.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HUM has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Humana from $344.00 to $407.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Humana from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $249.00 to $370.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Guggenheim raised their price target on shares of Humana from $269.00 to $471.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Needham & Company LLC assumed coverage on shares of Humana in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, Evercore raised Humana from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $480.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $403.91.

Humana Company Profile

Humana Inc (NYSE:HUM) is a U.S.-based health insurance and health care services company focused primarily on government-sponsored programs. Its offerings include Medicare Advantage plans, Medicare prescription drug plans, Medicaid coverage and specialty insurance products, serving individuals, employers and government organizations.

Through its CenterWell business, Humana also provides senior-focused primary care, pharmacy services and home health care. These operations are designed to support coordinated care for older adults and other members with ongoing health care needs.

Humana was founded in 1961 as a nursing-home company and later expanded into hospital ownership before shifting its focus toward health insurance.