VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al Increases Holdings in Humana Inc. $HUM

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al raised its stake in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) by 63.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 188,664 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 73,464 shares during the quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al’s holdings in Humana were worth $49,085,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its position in Humana by 16.2% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,136,538 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $300,728,000 after acquiring an additional 158,528 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its stake in shares of Humana by 104.2% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 6,429 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,701,000 after purchasing an additional 3,281 shares during the period. Swedbank AB grew its holdings in Humana by 5.3% during the 2nd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 100,397 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $24,545,000 after purchasing an additional 5,032 shares in the last quarter. Kera Capital Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in Humana during the 2nd quarter worth $253,000. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its holdings in Humana by 219.3% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 242,385 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $59,258,000 after buying an additional 166,475 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.38% of the company’s stock.

Humana Stock Performance

Shares of HUM opened at $259.12 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.16 billion, a PE ratio of 24.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.46. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $257.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $260.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 2.02 and a quick ratio of 2.02. Humana Inc. has a 12-month low of $206.87 and a 12-month high of $315.35.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The insurance provider reported $3.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.95 by $0.29. Humana had a net margin of 1.02% and a return on equity of 12.86%. The company had revenue of $32.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.99 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $4.16 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Humana Inc. will post 16.47 EPS for the current year.

Humana Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 26th will be issued a $0.885 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 26th. This represents a $3.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. Humana’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.18%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HUM has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barclays lowered their target price on Humana from $245.00 to $234.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. KeyCorp restated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Humana in a report on Friday, December 12th. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on Humana from $280.00 to $264.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Humana from $344.00 to $347.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Humana from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $294.32.

About Humana

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.