Humana (NYSE:HUM) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Humana (NYSE:HUM) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report report published on Tuesday.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $283.00 price objective on shares of Humana in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Humana from $261.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Humana from $301.00 to $285.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Humana from $257.00 to $256.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Bank of America raised Humana from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $247.00 to $308.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Nineteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Humana presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $285.68.

Humana Trading Up 2.5 %

Humana stock opened at $261.49 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $270.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $287.87. The company has a quick ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. Humana has a 12 month low of $213.31 and a 12 month high of $406.46. The stock has a market cap of $31.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.56.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The insurance provider reported ($2.16) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($2.26) by $0.10. Humana had a return on equity of 11.70% and a net margin of 1.02%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Humana will post 16.47 EPS for the current year.

Humana Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be given a $0.885 dividend. This represents a $3.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. Humana’s payout ratio is presently 35.58%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Timothy S. Huval sold 3,703 shares of Humana stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.26, for a total transaction of $948,930.78. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 8,181 shares in the company, valued at $2,096,463.06. The trade was a 31.16 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.32% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Humana

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of HUM. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Humana by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,070 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $272,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. Atlas Brown Inc. lifted its holdings in Humana by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Atlas Brown Inc. now owns 6,352 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,611,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. grew its stake in Humana by 2.5% in the third quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 1,639 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $519,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. increased its holdings in shares of Humana by 21.0% in the fourth quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 236 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its position in shares of Humana by 26.1% during the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 208 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. 92.38% of the stock is currently 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.