Baird Financial Group Inc. Purchases 4,129 Shares of Humana Inc. $HUM

Key Points

• Baird Financial Group increased its Humana position by 58.2% in the second quarter, purchasing 4,129 additional shares and bringing its holdings to 11,228 shares valued at $4.46 million.
• Institutional investors own 92.38% of Humana, while analyst sentiment is mixed: the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $403.91.
• Humana exceeded quarterly expectations with $7.61 in earnings per share and $40.89 billion in revenue, up 26.2% year over year. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.885 per share, implying a 0.9% yield.

Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM - Free Report) by 58.2% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,228 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 4,129 shares during the quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Humana were worth $4,460,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HUM. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Humana in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,412,000. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Humana by 23.7% during the 4th quarter. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC now owns 24,757 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $6,341,000 after purchasing an additional 4,740 shares in the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Humana during the 2nd quarter valued at $1,749,014,000. North Dakota State Investment Board bought a new position in Humana in the 4th quarter valued at $1,517,000. Finally, Compass Financial Management LLC acquired a new position in Humana in the second quarter worth $1,229,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.38% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on HUM. Zacks Research lowered shares of Humana from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of Humana from $246.00 to $415.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Humana in a research report on Friday, September 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $425.00 price objective on shares of Humana in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Humana from $316.00 to $393.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $403.91.

Humana Stock Down 2.7%

Shares of HUM stock opened at $396.06 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $389.27 and a 200-day moving average of $307.59. The company has a quick ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. Humana Inc. has a 12-month low of $163.11 and a 12-month high of $428.88. The company has a market capitalization of $47.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.74.

Humana (NYSE:HUM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The insurance provider reported $7.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.27 by $0.34. The company had revenue of $40.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $40.58 billion. Humana had a return on equity of 11.20% and a net margin of 0.88%.Humana's revenue for the quarter was up 26.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $6.27 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Humana Inc. will post 9 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, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.885 per share. This represents a $3.54 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 30th. Humana's payout ratio is currently 33.49%.

Humana Profile

Humana Inc NYSE: HUM is a U.S.-based health insurance and health care services company focused primarily on government-sponsored programs. Its offerings include Medicare Advantage plans, Medicare prescription drug plans, Medicaid coverage and specialty insurance products, serving individuals, employers and government organizations.

Through its CenterWell business, Humana also provides senior-focused primary care, pharmacy services and home health care. These operations are designed to support coordinated care for older adults and other members with ongoing health care needs.

Humana was founded in 1961 as a nursing-home company and later expanded into hospital ownership before shifting its focus toward health insurance.

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