Leerink Partnrs Comments on Humana Inc.’s Q2 2024 Earnings (NYSE:HUM)

Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) – Equities research analysts at Leerink Partnrs dropped their Q2 2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Humana in a research note issued on Wednesday, April 24th. Leerink Partnrs analyst W. Mayo now forecasts that the insurance provider will post earnings of $6.74 per share for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $6.80. The consensus estimate for Humana’s current full-year earnings is $16.06 per share. Leerink Partnrs also issued estimates for Humana’s FY2024 earnings at $16.19 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $8.22 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $36.15 EPS.

HUM has been the topic of several other reports. StockNews.com lowered Humana from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Truist Financial restated a “hold” rating and issued a $550.00 price target on shares of Humana in a report on Friday, January 19th. Raymond James initiated coverage on Humana in a report on Friday, March 22nd. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. Stephens cut their price target on Humana from $550.00 to $430.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Argus lowered Humana from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $433.74.

Humana Stock Performance

HUM stock opened at $305.91 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $327.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $394.49. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market cap of $36.91 billion, a PE ratio of 19.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.45. Humana has a 1-year low of $299.23 and a 1-year high of $541.21.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The insurance provider reported $7.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.12 by $1.11. The firm had revenue of $29.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.52 billion. Humana had a return on equity of 17.76% and a net margin of 1.82%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $9.38 earnings per share.

Humana Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be given a dividend of $0.885 per share. This represents a $3.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.16%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 28th. Humana’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.04%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Humana news, Director Jorge S. Mesquita purchased 545 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $367.09 per share, with a total value of $200,064.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,578 shares in the company, valued at $946,358.02. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.32% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Humana

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in HUM. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its position in shares of Humana by 103.0% in the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 2,883 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,403,000 after purchasing an additional 1,463 shares during the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC grew its position in shares of Humana by 3.6% in the third quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 1,421 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $693,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in shares of Humana by 2.8% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 805 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $392,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank grew its position in shares of Humana by 46.4% in the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 21,656 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $10,536,000 after purchasing an additional 6,866 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Humana during the third quarter worth approximately $213,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.38% of the company’s stock.

About Humana

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.