Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) to Issue $0.89 Quarterly Dividend

Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, April 18th, RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be paid a dividend of 0.885 per share by the insurance provider on Friday, July 26th. This represents a $3.54 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.08%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 28th.

Humana has increased its dividend payment by an average of 12.3% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 7 years. Humana has a payout ratio of 15.4% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Humana to earn $22.86 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $3.54 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 15.5%.

Humana Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE HUM opened at $328.33 on Friday. Humana has a 12 month low of $299.23 and a 12 month high of $541.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.57, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.45. The business has a 50-day moving average of $330.40 and a 200-day moving average of $400.99.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The insurance provider reported ($0.11) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.76 by ($0.87). The business had revenue of $26.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.47 billion. Humana had a return on equity of 19.44% and a net margin of 2.34%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.62 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Humana will post 16.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Humana

In other Humana news, Director Jorge S. Mesquita bought 545 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was bought at an average price of $367.09 per share, for a total transaction of $200,064.05. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,578 shares in the company, valued at $946,358.02. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.32% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Humana

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Hollencrest Capital Management raised its holdings in shares of Humana by 4,628.6% during the first quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 331 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $161,000 after acquiring an additional 324 shares in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. lifted its position in Humana by 160.7% during the first quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 365 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $159,000 after buying an additional 225 shares during the period. Harbour Investments Inc. lifted its position in Humana by 51.8% during the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 346 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $158,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the period. West Tower Group LLC purchased a new position in Humana during the fourth quarter valued at $143,000. Finally, First Manhattan Co. lifted its position in Humana by 1,300.0% during the fourth quarter. First Manhattan Co. now owns 280 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $143,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on HUM. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on Humana from $450.00 to $385.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. TD Cowen cut their target price on Humana from $427.00 to $396.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Argus lowered Humana from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. StockNews.com lowered Humana from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Mizuho cut their target price on Humana from $550.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $465.42.

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.