Humana (NYSE:HUM) Trading Up 5.3% – Here’s Why

by · The Markets Daily

Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM – Get Free Report)’s share price was up 5.3% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $295.72 and last traded at $292.56. Approximately 487,027 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 74% from the average daily volume of 1,867,183 shares. The stock had previously closed at $277.78.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HUM has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America raised shares of Humana from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $247.00 to $308.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Barclays boosted their price target on Humana from $250.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Humana from $387.00 to $290.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Humana from $332.00 to $396.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Humana from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $308.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Twenty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $315.86.

Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Humana

Humana Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.76 and a quick ratio of 1.76. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $278.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $331.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $35.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.62, a PEG ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.52.

Humana (NYSE:HUM – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $4.16 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.48 by $0.68. Humana had a net margin of 1.18% and a return on equity of 13.20%. The firm had revenue of $29.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $28.66 billion. Research analysts expect that Humana Inc. will post 15.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Humana Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $0.885 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $3.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.22%. Humana’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.36%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV raised its holdings in Humana by 244.0% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 86 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. increased its position in Humana by 111.4% during the 2nd quarter. CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. now owns 74 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Atwood & Palmer Inc. acquired a new stake in Humana during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Humana during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Your Advocates Ltd. LLP increased its position in Humana by 81.8% during the 3rd quarter. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP now owns 100 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.38% of the company’s stock.

Humana Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.

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