Intact Investment Management Inc. Raises Position in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM)

Intact Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) by 633.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 8,800 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 7,600 shares during the quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Humana were worth $4,029,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Humana in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Gradient Investments LLC raised its holdings in Humana by 200.0% in the 4th quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 60 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Trust Company N.A acquired a new stake in Humana in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Nvwm LLC raised its holdings in Humana by 41.0% in the 3rd quarter. Nvwm LLC now owns 86 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Operose Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Humana in the 3rd quarter valued at about $56,000. 92.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Jorge S. Mesquita purchased 545 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $367.09 per share, for a total transaction of $200,064.05. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,578 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $946,358.02. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.32% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Humana Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of Humana stock traded down $5.51 during trading on Friday, hitting $305.90. 1,213,131 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,914,716. The stock has a market cap of $36.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.45. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $327.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $393.91. Humana Inc. has a 12-month low of $299.23 and a 12-month high of $541.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.59.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The insurance provider reported $7.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.12 by $1.11. Humana had a net margin of 1.82% and a return on equity of 17.76%. The firm had revenue of $29.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.52 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $9.38 EPS. Humana’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Humana Inc. will post 16.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Humana Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.885 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $3.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.16%. Humana’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Mizuho cut their price objective on shares of Humana from $550.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 26th. Argus downgraded shares of Humana from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Humana from $334.00 to $326.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Oppenheimer cut their price target on shares of Humana from $415.00 to $370.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Humana from $356.00 to $310.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $424.50.

Humana 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.