Humana (NYSE:HUM) Shares Gap Down - Time to Sell?

Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $245.77, but opened at $231.60. Humana shares last traded at $235.64, with a volume of 459,846 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HUM has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Humana from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Raymond James upgraded shares of Humana from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $315.00 target price on the stock 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. 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. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated a "neutral" rating and set a $290.00 target price on shares of Humana in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Humana presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $286.81.

Humana Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $28.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.49. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $262.84 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $269.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.76 and a quick ratio of 1.76.

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

Humana Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 25th. Investors of record on Friday, June 27th will be given a dividend of $0.885 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 27th. This represents a $3.54 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.51%. Humana's payout ratio is 25.04%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Humana

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of HUM. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Humana by 399.7% during the 4th quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,643 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $924,000 after acquiring an additional 2,914 shares during the last quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama lifted its position in shares of Humana by 735.9% during the fourth quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 219,002 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $55,563,000 after purchasing an additional 192,801 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Humana by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 964,926 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $244,811,000 after purchasing an additional 65,735 shares during the last quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Humana in the 4th quarter worth about $244,000. Finally, denkapparat Operations GmbH bought a new stake in Humana in the 4th quarter worth about $323,000. Institutional investors own 92.38% of the company's stock.

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.

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