Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Sells 15,987 Shares of Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM - Free Report) by 84.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,028 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 15,987 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Humana were worth $768,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in HUM. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Humana by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,070 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $272,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. grew its holdings in Humana by 21.0% in the fourth quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 236 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its holdings in shares of Humana by 26.1% during the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 208 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Retirement Planning Co of New England Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Humana by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Retirement Planning Co of New England Inc. now owns 966 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $245,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Finally, LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA raised its holdings in shares of Humana by 56.3% during the fourth quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 125 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. 92.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Humana from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $290.00 price objective on shares of Humana in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Raymond James raised Humana from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $315.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen raised Humana from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price objective on Humana from $300.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $286.81.

Humana Stock Performance

HUM stock traded up $2.83 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $232.91. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,524,287 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,780,927. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $257.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $266.80. The company has a quick ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. Humana Inc. has a 1 year low of $212.45 and a 1 year high of $406.46. The stock has a market cap of $28.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.41, a PEG ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.49.

Humana (NYSE:HUM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The insurance provider reported $11.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.07 by $1.51. Humana had a return on equity of 11.70% and a net margin of 1.02%. The business had revenue of $32.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $32 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $7.23 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Humana Inc. will post 16.47 EPS for the current year.

Humana Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 27th will be given a $0.885 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 27th. This represents a $3.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.52%. Humana's dividend payout ratio is currently 25.04%.

Humana Company Profile

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.