Auxano Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM)

Auxano Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 1,180 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $540,000.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in HUM. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Humana in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Gradient Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Humana by 200.0% during the 4th quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 60 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Trust Company N.A acquired a new position in shares of Humana in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Nvwm LLC boosted its stake in Humana by 41.0% in the third quarter. Nvwm LLC now owns 86 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Humana during the 4th quarter worth about $55,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Jorge S. Mesquita acquired 545 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $367.09 per share, for a total transaction of $200,064.05. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,578 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $946,358.02. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Humana from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $595.00 to $360.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Humana from $550.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on shares of Humana from $411.00 to $381.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their price objective on shares of Humana from $391.00 to $360.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Argus cut shares of Humana from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $424.50.

Humana Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of HUM traded down $1.06 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $302.09. 1,565,526 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,986,709. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $326.86 and a 200 day simple moving average of $393.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.67. The company has a market cap of $36.40 billion, a PE ratio of 19.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.45. Humana Inc. has a 52 week low of $299.23 and a 52 week high of $541.21.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The insurance provider reported $7.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.12 by $1.11. The firm had revenue of $29.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.52 billion. Humana had a net margin of 1.82% and a return on equity of 17.76%. The company’s revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $9.38 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Humana Inc. will post 16.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Humana Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be given a dividend of $0.885 per share. This represents a $3.54 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 28th. Humana’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.04%.

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.