Humana (NYSE:HUM) Hits New 52-Week Low – Should You Sell?

Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) shares reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $163.11 and last traded at $166.1230, with a volume of 179338 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $166.45.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on HUM. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $344.00 target price on shares of Humana in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Humana in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Humana from $260.00 to $173.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Leerink Partners reduced their price objective on shares of Humana from $267.00 to $185.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Evercore decreased their target price on shares of Humana from $260.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $225.48.

Humana Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 2.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $204.29 and a 200-day simple moving average of $244.61. The company has a market capitalization of $20.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.05, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.44.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The insurance provider reported ($3.96) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($4.01) by $0.05. The business had revenue of $32.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $32.08 billion. Humana had a net margin of 0.92% and a return on equity of 11.43%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($2.16) EPS. Humana has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.000-9.000 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Humana Inc. will post 16.47 EPS for the current year.

Humana Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.885 per share. This represents a $3.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 27th. Humana’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Humana

In other news, insider Sanjay K. Shetty bought 810 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The stock was bought at an average price of $185.21 per share, for a total transaction of $150,020.10. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider owned 11,657 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,158,992.97. The trade was a 7.47% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Humana

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Capital International Investors increased its holdings in Humana by 113.9% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 5,818,008 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,490,239,000 after purchasing an additional 3,097,571 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in Humana by 273.2% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,488,261 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $907,541,000 after purchasing an additional 2,553,509 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Humana in the fourth quarter worth $456,632,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Humana by 4,481.7% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,196,502 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $306,460,000 after purchasing an additional 1,170,387 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of Humana by 914.5% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,255,665 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $321,613,000 after buying an additional 1,131,893 shares in the last quarter. 92.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.