Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) Announces Quarterly Dividend of $0.89

Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, April 18th, RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be given a dividend of 0.885 per share by the insurance provider on Friday, July 26th. This represents a $3.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.09%.

Humana has increased its dividend payment by an average of 12.3% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 7 years. Humana has a dividend payout ratio of 15.2% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Humana to earn $22.86 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $3.54 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 15.5%.

Humana Price Performance

Shares of HUM stock opened at $324.83 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $343.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $425.01. Humana has a 52-week low of $299.23 and a 52-week high of $541.21. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $39.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.45.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The insurance provider reported ($0.11) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by ($0.87). The company had revenue of $26.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.47 billion. Humana had a net margin of 2.34% and a return on equity of 19.44%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.62 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Humana will post 16.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on HUM shares. Argus lowered Humana from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. StockNews.com downgraded Humana from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Truist Financial reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $550.00 target price on shares of Humana in a report on Friday, January 19th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of Humana from $550.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Stephens reduced their price objective on shares of Humana from $550.00 to $430.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $465.42.

Insider Buying and Selling at Humana

In other Humana news, Director Jorge S. Mesquita purchased 545 shares of Humana stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was bought at an average price of $367.09 per share, with a total value of $200,064.05. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,578 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $946,358.02. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.32% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Humana

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Point72 Europe London LLP purchased a new position in Humana in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Humana during the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Humana in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $72,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Humana by 33.6% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 171 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $75,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atlas Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Humana by 82.8% during the fourth quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 245 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $112,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. 92.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.