Humana (NYSE:HUM) Shares Gap Up Following Analyst Upgrade

Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday after Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on the stock from $206.00 to $227.00. The stock had previously closed at $182.65, but opened at $202.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Humana shares last traded at $191.9550, with a volume of 1,785,125 shares changing hands.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on HUM. Oppenheimer set a $250.00 price objective on Humana in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Zacks Research raised Humana from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Humana from $245.00 to $176.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on Humana from $260.00 to $173.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Humana from $285.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $223.13.

Insider Transactions at Humana

In other Humana news, insider Sanjay K. Shetty bought 810 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $185.21 per share, with a total value of $150,020.10. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 11,657 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,158,992.97. This represents a 7.47% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Key Humana News

Here are the key news stories impacting Humana this week:

• Positive Sentiment: CMS finalized a 2.48% net average increase to 2027 Medicare Advantage payments — far above the 0.09% proposed in January — reducing reimbursement risk and adding an estimated multi-billion-dollar tailwind for private MA plans, directly benefiting Humana’s core Medicare Advantage business. Trump administration finalizes better-than-feared Medicare Advantage payment rate in boost to health insurers
• Positive Sentiment: Sector-wide relief rally led by major peers (UnitedHealth, CVS, Elevance) lifted Humana as markets priced in stronger 2027 reimbursement and lower regulatory uncertainty for managed-care operators. UnitedHealth Rockets 11%, Humana Climbs 9% as Medicare Advantage Rate Decision Crushes Regulatory Fears
• Positive Sentiment: Unusually large call-option activity: traders bought ~10,990 HUM calls (≈18% above typical volume), signaling short-term bullish positioning that can amplify upside and intraday momentum.
• Neutral Sentiment: Wells Fargo raised its Humana price target from $206 to $227 but kept an “equal weight” rating — a modest positive to the target but not a catalyst of a stronger buy recommendation. Wells Fargo raises Humana price target to $227
• Negative Sentiment: Wolfe Research trimmed its price target from $325 to $250 while maintaining an “outperform” rating — a mixed signal that reduces some upside expectations from prior, higher forecasts. Wolfe adjusts price target on Humana to $250 from $325, maintains outperform

Institutional Trading of Humana

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lifted its position in shares of Humana by 9.6% in the 3rd quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 49,658 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $12,920,000 after acquiring an additional 4,351 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Humana by 161.5% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,717,767 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $446,911,000 after buying an additional 1,060,767 shares during the period. National Pension Service lifted its position in shares of Humana by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 189,601 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $49,328,000 after buying an additional 5,150 shares during the period. Long Focus Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Humana during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,212,000. Finally, Tejara Capital Ltd bought a new position in shares of Humana during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,873,000. Institutional investors own 92.38% of the company’s stock.

Humana Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 2.00 and a current ratio of 2.00. The firm has a market cap of $23.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a 50-day moving average of $180.49 and a 200 day moving average of $233.91.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The insurance provider reported ($3.96) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($4.01) by $0.05. The business had revenue of $32.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $32.08 billion. Humana had a return on equity of 11.43% and a net margin of 0.92%.Humana’s revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($2.16) EPS. Humana has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.000-9.000 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Humana Inc. will post 16.47 EPS for the current year.

Humana Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 24th. Investors of record on Friday, March 27th will be given a dividend of $0.885 per share. This represents a $3.54 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 27th. Humana’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.05%.

About Humana

Humana Inc (NYSE: HUM) is a health insurance company headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, that primarily serves individuals and groups across the United States. The company is best known for its Medicare business, offering Medicare Advantage plans and prescription drug (Part D) coverage, alongside a range of commercial and employer-sponsored group health plans. Humana’s products are designed to cover medical, behavioral health and pharmacy needs for members, with particular emphasis on seniors and Medicare-eligible populations.

In addition to traditional insurance products, Humana provides care-management and wellness services intended to support chronic-condition management, preventive care and care coordination.