Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc. Buys New Stake in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM)

Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc. purchased a new position in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor purchased 17,056 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $4,327,000. Humana accounts for about 1.6% of Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in HUM. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Humana by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,357,420 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,701,582,000 after purchasing an additional 53,272 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its position in Humana by 23.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,388,859 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,073,387,000 after purchasing an additional 643,291 shares during the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Humana by 8.1% during the 3rd quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 2,506,250 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $793,830,000 after purchasing an additional 187,903 shares in the last quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board raised its holdings in shares of Humana by 6.5% in the third quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 1,173,535 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $371,705,000 after buying an additional 71,910 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sanders Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Humana by 1.0% in the third quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 1,168,341 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $370,060,000 after buying an additional 11,923 shares during the last quarter. 92.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Timothy S. Huval sold 3,703 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.26, for a total transaction of $948,930.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 8,181 shares in the company, valued at $2,096,463.06. This represents a 31.16 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.32% of the company’s stock.

Humana Price Performance

Shares of Humana stock opened at $255.77 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $30.80 billion, a PE ratio of 25.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.56. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $269.41 and a 200 day moving average price of $290.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. Humana Inc. has a twelve month low of $213.31 and a twelve month high of $406.46.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The insurance provider reported ($2.16) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($2.26) by $0.10. Humana had a return on equity of 11.70% and a net margin of 1.02%. Sell-side analysts predict that Humana Inc. will post 16.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Humana Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.885 per share. This represents a $3.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.38%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 28th. Humana’s payout ratio is 35.58%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HUM has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $283.00 price objective on shares of Humana in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Humana from $387.00 to $290.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Barclays raised their price objective on Humana from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Humana from $270.00 to $288.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $290.00 price target on shares of Humana in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $285.68.

Humana Company Profile

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.