Humana (NYSE:HUM) Cut to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Humana (NYSE:HUM) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report published on Sunday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

HUM has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Oppenheimer upped their target price on Humana from $475.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 12th. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised Humana to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 9th. Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $450.00 price target on shares of Humana in a report on Monday, August 24th. Barclays boosted their price target on Humana from $515.00 to $582.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Humana from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Twenty-one equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Humana has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $453.30.

Humana Price Performance

NYSE HUM opened at $417.70 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a current ratio of 1.74. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $402.16 and its 200-day moving average price is $310.09. Humana has a 52-week low of $163.11 and a 52-week high of $456.50. The company has a market cap of $50.16 billion, a PE ratio of 23.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.65.

Humana Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 24th will be given a dividend of $0.8850 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 24th. This represents a $3.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Humana’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.49%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Humana

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Humana during the second quarter worth $4,138,160,000. Pzena Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Humana during the second quarter valued at $1,749,014,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in Humana by 20,126.8% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,255,479 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $479,053,000 after buying an additional 1,249,272 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in Humana in the second quarter valued at $329,760,000. Finally, Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC acquired a new position in shares of Humana in the second quarter worth about $314,922,000. 92.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Humana Company Profile

Humana Inc is a health and well-being company that provides insurance products and health care services in the United States and Puerto Rico. The company’s primary business is government-sponsored health coverage, particularly Medicare Advantage plans for older adults, along with Medicare prescription drug plans, Medicaid coverage and certain commercial health insurance products.

Humana also operates CenterWell, its health care services platform focused on older adults. CenterWell includes primary care clinics, home health services and pharmacy services, with an emphasis on coordinated care, chronic-condition management and helping members receive care in lower-cost settings.

Founded in 1961 as a nursing-home company, Humana expanded into hospital operations before shifting its focus toward health insurance and related services.