Baupost Group LLC MA Acquires New Position in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM)

Baupost Group LLC MA bought a new position in shares of Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund bought 346,000 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $87,784,000. Humana accounts for about 2.5% of Baupost Group LLC MA’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Humana by 15.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,829,210 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,254,899,000 after buying an additional 1,751,857 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Humana during the 4th quarter worth about $416,202,000. Pzena Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Humana by 44.0% during the 4th quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 3,609,382 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $915,736,000 after purchasing an additional 1,103,132 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners grew its stake in Humana by 435.8% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,098,702 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $279,236,000 after purchasing an additional 893,637 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Humana by 29.8% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,397,808 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $608,348,000 after purchasing an additional 550,692 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.38% of the company’s stock.

Humana Stock Up 1.6 %

HUM opened at $294.97 on Monday. 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 Inc. has a twelve month low of $213.31 and a twelve month high of $406.46. The company has a market cap of $35.60 billion, a PE ratio of 29.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $265.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $270.35.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The insurance provider reported ($2.16) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($2.26) by $0.10. Humana had a return on equity of 11.70% and a net margin of 1.02%. Sell-side analysts expect that Humana Inc. will post 16.47 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, April 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.885 per share. This represents a $3.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.20%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 28th. Humana’s payout ratio is 35.58%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on HUM shares. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Humana from $270.00 to $288.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Humana from $301.00 to $285.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Guggenheim began coverage on shares of Humana in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $326.00 target price for the company. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Humana from $270.00 to $322.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $290.00 price objective on shares of Humana in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $288.60.

About Humana

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.