Humana (NYSE:HUM) Stock Price Up 2%

Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) shares rose 2% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $330.00 and last traded at $320.84. Approximately 742,737 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 63% from the average daily volume of 2,002,590 shares. The stock had previously closed at $314.64.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on HUM shares. Stephens reduced their price target on Humana from $550.00 to $430.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 26th. TheStreet cut Humana from a “b” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Monday, January 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on Humana from $450.00 to $385.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $370.00 price objective (down from $530.00) on shares of Humana in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of Humana from $550.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 26th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $465.42.

Humana Stock Performance

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $346.29 and its 200-day moving average price is $427.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a current ratio of 1.59. The company has a market cap of $38.43 billion, a PE ratio of 16.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.45.

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

Humana Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 29th will be given a dividend of $0.885 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $3.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.11%. Humana’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.86%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Jorge S. Mesquita purchased 545 shares of Humana stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $367.09 per share, for a total transaction of $200,064.05. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,578 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $946,358.02. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Humana

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in HUM. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC lifted its stake in Humana by 2.6% in the third quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 817 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $397,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in Humana by 2.8% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 805 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $392,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Vestcor Inc lifted its stake in Humana by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Vestcor Inc now owns 8,292 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $4,247,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN lifted its stake in Humana by 7.2% in the fourth quarter. First Financial Corp IN now owns 343 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $157,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Humana by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 582 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $298,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. 92.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.