Wright Investors Service Inc. Acquires Shares of 1,078 Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM)

Wright Investors Service Inc. acquired a new stake in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 1,078 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $494,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HUM. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt grew its holdings in shares of Humana by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 4,427 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,029,000 after buying an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its holdings in Humana by 25.5% during the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 17,021 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $7,792,000 after purchasing an additional 3,458 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Humana in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Tyche Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Humana in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $271,000. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its holdings in shares of Humana by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 45,880 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $21,004,000 after acquiring an additional 1,237 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.38% of the company’s stock.

Humana Stock Performance

NYSE:HUM opened at $324.83 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $343.55 and its 200 day simple moving average is $425.01. Humana Inc. has a twelve month low of $299.23 and a twelve month high of $541.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.19 billion, a PE ratio of 16.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.59, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The insurance provider reported ($0.11) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by ($0.87). The company had revenue of $26.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.47 billion. Humana had a return on equity of 19.44% and a net margin of 2.34%. Humana’s revenue was up 17.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.62 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Humana Inc. will post 16.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Humana Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be paid a $0.885 dividend. This represents a $3.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.09%. Humana’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.86%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Humana from $450.00 to $385.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. TD Cowen dropped their target price on Humana from $427.00 to $396.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on Humana from $507.00 to $415.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 26th. Raymond James initiated coverage on Humana in a report on Friday, March 22nd. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $370.00 price target (down previously from $530.00) on shares of Humana in a report on Friday, January 26th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $465.42.

Insider Buying and Selling at Humana

In other Humana news, Director Jorge S. Mesquita acquired 545 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $367.09 per share, with a total value of $200,064.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,578 shares in the company, valued at $946,358.02. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.32% 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.