Candriam S.C.A. Acquires 15,833 Shares of Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM)

Candriam S.C.A. raised its holdings in shares of Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) by 178.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 24,710 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 15,833 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in Humana were worth $6,269,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Humana in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Humana in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Humana in the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Atwood & Palmer Inc. boosted its stake in Humana by 64.5% in the 4th quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. now owns 153 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Humana in the 4th quarter worth $49,000. Institutional investors own 92.38% of the company’s stock.

Humana Trading Down 2.2 %

Shares of HUM stock opened at $259.86 on Friday. Humana Inc. has a 52-week low of $213.31 and a 52-week high of $406.46. 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 company has a 50-day simple moving average of $271.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $284.13. The company has a market capitalization of $31.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.12, a PEG ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.57.

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

Humana Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Friday, March 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.885 per share. This represents a $3.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.36%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 28th. Humana’s payout ratio is currently 35.58%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HUM has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Humana from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $283.00 target price on shares of Humana in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Humana from $270.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Humana from $257.00 to $256.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Humana from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Twenty investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Humana currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $285.68.

Insider Activity at Humana

In related news, insider Timothy S. Huval sold 3,703 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.26, for a total transaction of $948,930.78. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 8,181 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,096,463.06. This represents a 31.16 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.32% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.