Humana (NYSE:HUM) Trading Up 3.1% After Analyst Upgrade

Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM)’s stock price rose 3.1% during mid-day trading on Wednesday after Morgan Stanley raised their price target on the stock from $288.00 to $301.00. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Humana traded as high as $242.40 and last traded at $241.04. Approximately 1,641,389 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 12% from the average daily volume of 1,861,497 shares. The stock had previously closed at $233.89.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on HUM. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Humana from $261.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Humana from $332.00 to $396.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. KeyCorp started coverage on shares of Humana in a report on Friday, October 11th. They set a “sector weight” rating on the stock. Barclays lifted their target price on Humana from $250.00 to $253.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Humana from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $308.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Twenty research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $300.50.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Humana

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV raised its stake in Humana by 244.0% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 86 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the period. Atwood & Palmer Inc. purchased a new stake in Humana in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Humana during the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Humana by 81.8% in the 3rd quarter. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP now owns 100 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in Humana during the second quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 92.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Humana Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The company’s fifty day moving average is $274.43 and its 200 day moving average is $322.89. The company has a market cap of $29.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.53.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $4.16 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.48 by $0.68. Humana had a return on equity of 13.20% and a net margin of 1.18%. The company had revenue of $29.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.66 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that Humana Inc. will post 16.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Humana Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $0.885 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $3.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.47%. Humana’s payout ratio is currently 31.36%.

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.