Short Interest in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) Declines By 14.8%

Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large decrease in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,120,000 shares, a decrease of 14.8% from the March 31st total of 3,660,000 shares. Currently, 2.6% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 1,720,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.8 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Humana

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HUM. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Humana in the third quarter valued at approximately $631,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of Humana during the 3rd quarter valued at $948,000. Synovus Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of Humana by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 2,254 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $714,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Humana by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 170,636 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $54,047,000 after buying an additional 3,961 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in Humana by 15.5% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 387 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $98,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. 92.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Humana Price Performance

Humana stock traded down $4.78 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $251.91. 985,406 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,749,671. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.76 and a quick ratio of 1.76. The company has a market capitalization of $30.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.32, a PEG ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.49. Humana has a 12-month low of $213.31 and a 12-month high of $406.46. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $266.21 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $270.69.

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

Humana Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 27th will be given a $0.885 dividend. This represents a $3.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 27th. Humana's dividend payout ratio is currently 25.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on HUM shares. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Humana from $270.00 to $288.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Humana from $290.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. StockNews.com lowered Humana from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Humana from $301.00 to $285.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $283.00 price objective on shares of Humana in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Eighteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Humana has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $287.76.

About Humana

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.