Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) Short Interest Up 6.2% in September

Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,240,000 shares, a growth of 6.2% from the August 31st total of 2,110,000 shares. Approximately 1.9% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,280,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.8 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HUM has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Humana in a report on Wednesday, June 26th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $392.00 price objective for the company. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Humana from $396.00 to $407.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated a “neutral” rating and set a $395.00 price objective on shares of Humana in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Humana in a research report on Monday, June 24th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $374.00 target price for the company. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of Humana from $370.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $398.70.

Humana Trading Down 11.8 %

NYSE:HUM traded down $37.32 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $279.42. The company had a trading volume of 7,032,777 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,658,002. Humana has a 52 week low of $276.80 and a 52 week high of $530.54. The company has a market capitalization of $33.67 billion, a PE ratio of 18.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.66. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $348.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $344.23.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The insurance provider reported $6.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.89 by $1.07. The firm had revenue of $29.54 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.52 billion. Humana had a net margin of 1.53% and a return on equity of 16.12%. The company’s revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $8.94 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Humana will post 16.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Humana Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be given a $0.885 dividend. This represents a $3.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.27%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. Humana’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.04%.

Institutional Trading of Humana

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Heritage Oak Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Humana during the 2nd quarter valued at about $3,456,000. AdvisorShares Investments LLC bought a new position in Humana during the 4th quarter valued at about $421,000. APG Asset Management US Inc. lifted its stake in Humana by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. APG Asset Management US Inc. now owns 67,669 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $25,274,000 after acquiring an additional 1,955 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. lifted its stake in shares of Humana by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 61,897 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $21,462,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares during the period. Finally, Cetera Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Humana by 472.1% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 10,098 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,501,000 after purchasing an additional 8,333 shares during the period. 92.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.