Humana (NYSE:HUM) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Humana from “buy” to “hold,” though the broader analyst consensus remains “Moderate Buy,” with 21 Buy, 10 Hold and 1 Sell rating and an average price target of $453.30.
• Humana shares opened at $414.04, down 0.8%, with a market capitalization of approximately $49.72 billion and a 52-week range of $163.11 to $456.50.
• The insurer exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $7.61 in earnings per share versus a $7.27 consensus estimate and $40.89 billion in revenue, up 26.2% year over year; institutional investors own 92.38% of the stock.

Humana (NYSE:HUM - Get Free Report) was downgraded by Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report issued on Sunday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on HUM. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Humana from $475.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, October 12th. Lake Street Capital started coverage on shares of Humana in a report on Thursday, July 30th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Piper Sandler upgraded shares of Humana from a "hold" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $463.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Humana from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Friday, August 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upgraded Humana from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $390.00 to $596.00 in a report on Friday, October 9th. Twenty-one equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Humana has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $453.30.

Humana Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of Humana stock opened at $414.04 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $400.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $308.70. Humana has a 1 year low of $163.11 and a 1 year high of $456.50. The company has a market capitalization of $49.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.74 and a quick ratio of 1.74.

Humana (NYSE:HUM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The insurance provider reported $7.61 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.27 by $0.34. The firm had revenue of $40.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $40.58 billion. Humana had a net margin of 0.88% and a return on equity of 11.20%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 26.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $6.27 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Humana will post 9.03 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Humana

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Humana in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Trust Co. of Vermont bought a new stake in Humana in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Bogart Wealth LLC increased its position in Humana by 192.0% in the 2nd quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 73 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. MidFirst Bank acquired a new position in Humana during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Highland Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Humana in the second quarter worth approximately $43,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.38% of the company's stock.

About Humana

Humana Inc is a health and well-being company that provides insurance products and health care services in the United States and Puerto Rico. The company's primary business is government-sponsored health coverage, particularly Medicare Advantage plans for older adults, along with Medicare prescription drug plans, Medicaid coverage and certain commercial health insurance products.

Humana also operates CenterWell, its health care services platform focused on older adults. CenterWell includes primary care clinics, home health services and pharmacy services, with an emphasis on coordinated care, chronic-condition management and helping members receive care in lower-cost settings.

Founded in 1961 as a nursing-home company, Humana expanded into hospital operations before shifting its focus toward health insurance and related services.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.