Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) Receives $294.32 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

Shares of Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) have received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the twenty-one brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, nine have assigned a hold recommendation and nine have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $294.3158.

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on HUM. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Humana in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Barclays reduced their target price on Humana from $245.00 to $234.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Humana from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Humana from $280.00 to $264.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Wolfe Research decreased their target price on shares of Humana from $313.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 20th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Humana

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Capital International Investors bought a new stake in shares of Humana during the third quarter worth about $707,670,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in Humana by 273.2% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,488,261 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $907,541,000 after buying an additional 2,553,509 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Humana during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $397,079,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Humana by 3,257.5% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,162,600 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $307,624,000 after acquiring an additional 1,127,973 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of Humana by 161.5% during the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,717,767 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $446,911,000 after acquiring an additional 1,060,767 shares during the last quarter. 92.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Humana Price Performance

NYSE:HUM opened at $256.95 on Friday. Humana has a 52 week low of $206.87 and a 52 week high of $315.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a current ratio of 2.02. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $259.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $260.01. The firm has a market cap of $30.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.46.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The insurance provider reported $3.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.95 by $0.29. Humana had a net margin of 1.02% and a return on equity of 12.86%. The firm had revenue of $32.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.99 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $4.16 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Humana will post 16.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Humana Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 30th. Investors of record on Friday, December 26th will be paid a $0.885 dividend. This represents a $3.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 26th. Humana’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.18%.

About Humana

Humana Inc (NYSE: HUM) is a health insurance company headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, that primarily serves individuals and groups across the United States. The company is best known for its Medicare business, offering Medicare Advantage plans and prescription drug (Part D) coverage, alongside a range of commercial and employer-sponsored group health plans. Humana’s products are designed to cover medical, behavioral health and pharmacy needs for members, with particular emphasis on seniors and Medicare-eligible populations.

In addition to traditional insurance products, Humana provides care-management and wellness services intended to support chronic-condition management, preventive care and care coordination.