Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) Shares Sold by Prudential Financial Inc.

Prudential Financial Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) by 10.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 101,108 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 12,077 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc.’s holdings in Humana were worth $25,652,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in HUM. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in Humana during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Humana during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA boosted its position in Humana by 56.3% in the fourth quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 125 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in Humana in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Atwood & Palmer Inc. raised its position in Humana by 64.5% during the 4th quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. now owns 153 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. 92.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Humana Stock Down 1.3 %

HUM stock opened at $270.27 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $32.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.16, a PEG ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.57. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $270.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $274.97. Humana Inc. has a 12 month low of $213.31 and a 12 month high of $406.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The insurance provider reported ($2.16) EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, analysts forecast that Humana Inc. will post 16.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Humana Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Friday, March 28th will be given a dividend of $0.885 per share. This represents a $3.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 28th. Humana’s payout ratio is currently 35.58%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HUM has been the topic of several recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $283.00 price objective on shares of Humana in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $290.00 price objective on shares of Humana in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Humana from $301.00 to $285.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Humana from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Humana from $257.00 to $256.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Eighteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $285.68.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Humana news, insider Timothy S. Huval sold 3,703 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.26, for a total transaction of $948,930.78. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 8,181 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,096,463.06. This trade represents a 31.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.37% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.