Humana (NYSE:HUM) Reaches New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $369.34 and last traded at $365.8880, with a volume of 959547 shares. The stock had previously closed at $363.18.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on HUM. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Humana from a “cautious” rating to a “reduce” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Zacks Research upgraded Humana from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Barclays raised their price objective on Humana from $180.00 to $344.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Humana from $267.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Humana from $264.00 to $205.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Humana has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $286.13.

Humana Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The firm has a market cap of $43.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.13, a PEG ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 0.76. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $259.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $235.20.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The insurance provider reported $10.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.97 by $0.34. The business had revenue of $39.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $39.37 billion. Humana had a return on equity of 10.45% and a net margin of 0.82%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $11.58 EPS. Humana has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.000- EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Humana Inc. will post 9 EPS for the current year.

Humana Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 26th will be given a dividend of $0.885 per share. This represents a $3.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 26th. Humana’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.86%.

Institutional Trading of Humana

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in HUM. Capital International Investors boosted its position in shares of Humana by 113.9% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 5,818,008 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,490,239,000 after purchasing an additional 3,097,571 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Humana in the 4th quarter worth $456,632,000. Pzena Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Humana by 34.3% in the 1st quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 5,470,982 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $948,614,000 after purchasing an additional 1,398,774 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in shares of Humana by 4,481.7% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,196,502 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $306,460,000 after purchasing an additional 1,170,387 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in shares of Humana by 914.5% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,255,665 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $321,613,000 after purchasing an additional 1,131,893 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.38% of the company’s stock.

Humana Company Profile

Humana Inc (NYSE: HUM) is a health insurance company headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, that primarily serves individuals and groups across the United States. The company is best known for its Medicare business, offering Medicare Advantage plans and prescription drug (Part D) coverage, alongside a range of commercial and employer-sponsored group health plans. Humana’s products are designed to cover medical, behavioral health and pharmacy needs for members, with particular emphasis on seniors and Medicare-eligible populations.

In addition to traditional insurance products, Humana provides care-management and wellness services intended to support chronic-condition management, preventive care and care coordination.