EP Wealth Advisors LLC Takes $4.44 Million Position in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM)

EP Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 17,437 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $4,436,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Cibc World Market Inc. raised its stake in shares of Humana by 4.0% during the first quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 5,709 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,484,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares in the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL raised its position in Humana by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 5,660 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,463,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its holdings in shares of Humana by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 4,906 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,135,000 after buying an additional 26 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Humana by 19.0% during the 1st quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 615 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $268,000 after buying an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. increased its stake in shares of Humana by 25.0% during the first quarter. Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. now owns 29,809 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $12,971,000 after buying an additional 5,964 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 91.86% of the company’s stock.

Humana Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE HUM opened at $472.50 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $58.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.66. Humana Inc. has a 52-week low of $423.29 and a 52-week high of $571.30. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $466.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $487.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 2nd. The insurance provider reported $8.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.88 by $0.06. Humana had a return on equity of 20.70% and a net margin of 3.42%. The business had revenue of $26.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.83 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $8.67 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Humana Inc. will post 28.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Humana Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.885 per share. This represents a $3.54 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.75%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 28th. Humana’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.21%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Humana from $610.00 to $541.00 in a report on Thursday, July 13th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Humana from $616.00 to $613.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on Humana from $568.00 to $599.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 8th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Humana from $637.00 to $594.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Humana from $637.00 to $624.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 30th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Humana currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $592.30.

About Humana

Humana Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a health and well-being company in the United States. It operates through two segments, Insurance and CenterWell. The company offers medical and supplemental benefit plans to individuals. It also 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.