Humana (NYSE:HUM) Shares Gap Down on Analyst Downgrade

Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM - Get Free Report) gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday after Truist Financial lowered their price target on the stock from $325.00 to $305.00. The stock had previously closed at $252.86, but opened at $244.43. Truist Financial currently has a hold rating on the stock. Humana shares last traded at $235.74, with a volume of 345,626 shares changing hands.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Barclays boosted their price objective on Humana from $270.00 to $322.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Humana from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $290.00 price target 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. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their target price on Humana from $300.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Humana has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $286.81.

Institutional Trading of Humana

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of HUM. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Humana in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Humana in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its stake in shares of Humana by 63.9% in the 1st quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 118 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the period. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA grew its stake in shares of Humana by 56.3% in the 4th quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 125 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Humana in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.38% of the company's stock.

Humana Stock Performance

The firm's 50 day moving average price is $263.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $269.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a current ratio of 1.76. The firm has a market cap of $27.95 billion, a PE ratio of 23.24, a PEG ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.49.

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

Humana Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 25th. Investors 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 1.53%. Humana's dividend payout ratio is presently 25.04%.

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.