Brokerages Set Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) Price Target at $423.63

Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) has earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the twenty-one analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $410.47.

HUM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Humana from $356.00 to $310.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Baird R W upgraded shares of Humana to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on shares of Humana from $415.00 to $370.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Raymond James initiated coverage on shares of Humana in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird initiated coverage on shares of Humana in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $374.00 target price for the company.

Humana Price Performance

Shares of HUM stock opened at $355.88 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $341.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $354.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.67. Humana has a 1-year low of $298.61 and a 1-year high of $530.54. The firm has a market cap of $42.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 0.52.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The insurance provider reported $7.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.12 by $1.11. Humana had a net margin of 1.82% and a return on equity of 17.76%. The company had revenue of $29.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.52 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $9.38 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Humana will post 16.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Humana Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.885 per share. This represents a $3.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 28th. Humana’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.04%.

Institutional Trading of Humana

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HUM. Barlow Wealth Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Humana during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,977,000. Auxano Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Humana in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $540,000. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its position in Humana by 46.2% in the fourth quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 42,287 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $19,359,000 after acquiring an additional 13,356 shares in the last quarter. AdvisorShares Investments LLC bought a new stake in Humana in the fourth quarter worth approximately $421,000. Finally, Mariner LLC grew its position in Humana by 2.3% in the third quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 14,119 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $6,869,000 after acquiring an additional 312 shares in the last quarter. 92.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.