Humana (NYSE:HUM) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Humana (NYSE:HUM) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning,Zacks.com reports.

HUM has been the topic of several other research reports. Guggenheim dropped their price objective on shares of Humana from $312.00 to $252.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $344.00 target price on shares of Humana in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on Humana from $215.00 to $158.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Humana in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Humana from $290.00 to $206.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $225.48.

Humana Trading Down 0.8%

NYSE HUM opened at $179.27 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.62 billion, a PE ratio of 18.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.44. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $221.75 and its 200 day moving average is $252.27. Humana has a twelve month low of $169.61 and a twelve month high of $315.35. The company has a quick ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 2.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The insurance provider reported ($3.96) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($2.16) earnings per share. Humana has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.000-9.000 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Humana will post 16.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Humana Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 24th. Investors of record on Friday, March 27th will be issued a $0.885 dividend. This represents a $3.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 27th. Humana’s payout ratio is presently 36.05%.

Insider Transactions at Humana

In other Humana news, insider Sanjay K. Shetty acquired 810 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $185.21 per share, with a total value of $150,020.10. Following the transaction, the insider owned 11,657 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,158,992.97. The trade was a 7.47% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Humana

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Humana by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,261,860 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,652,890,000 after buying an additional 106,030 shares during the last quarter. Dodge & Cox raised its position in Humana by 5.6% in the 2nd quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 11,352,920 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,775,562,000 after buying an additional 597,705 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its position in Humana by 113.9% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 5,818,008 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,490,239,000 after buying an additional 3,097,571 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Humana by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,462,549 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,403,877,000 after acquiring an additional 97,211 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in Humana by 28.9% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,496,775 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,151,759,000 after acquiring an additional 1,008,514 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.38% of the company’s stock.

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.