Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the twenty-five ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Nineteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $315.86.

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. KeyCorp assumed coverage on shares of Humana in a research note on Friday, October 11th. They issued a “sector weight” rating on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Humana from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $308.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Piper Sandler cut shares of Humana from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $392.00 to $274.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Humana from $332.00 to $396.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, Leerink Partnrs lowered shares of Humana from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd.

Humana Stock Performance

NYSE HUM opened at $275.67 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $283.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $331.80. The stock has a market cap of $33.19 billion, a PE ratio of 24.42, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.52. Humana has a fifty-two week low of $213.31 and a fifty-two week high of $527.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a current ratio of 1.76.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $4.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.48 by $0.68. Humana had a net margin of 1.18% and a return on equity of 13.20%. The company had revenue of $29.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $28.66 billion. On average, equities analysts expect that Humana will post 15.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Humana Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a $0.885 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $3.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.28%. Humana’s payout ratio is 31.36%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Humana

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in Humana by 11.2% in the 1st quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 2,721 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $943,000 after buying an additional 275 shares during the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Humana in the 1st quarter valued at about $304,000. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC increased its stake in Humana by 17.3% in the 1st quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 4,299 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,490,000 after buying an additional 634 shares during the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC increased its stake in Humana by 22.1% in the 1st quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 983 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $341,000 after buying an additional 178 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&G Plc purchased a new stake in Humana in the 1st quarter valued at about $5,622,000. 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.