Vontobel Holding Ltd. Raises Stake in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. raised its stake in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) by 18.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,524 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,910 shares during the quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in Humana were worth $11,685,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HUM. Mariner LLC lifted its stake in shares of Humana by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 14,119 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $6,869,000 after purchasing an additional 312 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in shares of Humana by 27.5% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 27,943 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $13,595,000 after purchasing an additional 6,034 shares during the last quarter. Silverarc Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Humana in the 3rd quarter valued at $4,865,000. Vest Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of Humana by 43.3% in the 4th quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 27,993 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $12,815,000 after purchasing an additional 8,455 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Artemis Investment Management LLP lifted its stake in shares of Humana by 9.6% in the 4th quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 64,573 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $29,563,000 after purchasing an additional 5,672 shares during the last quarter. 92.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Humana Stock Up 0.7 %

Humana stock opened at $314.70 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.59. Humana Inc. has a 1-year low of $299.23 and a 1-year high of $541.21. The company has a market cap of $37.97 billion, a PE ratio of 15.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.45. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $346.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $427.62.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The insurance provider reported ($0.11) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by ($0.87). Humana had a net margin of 2.34% and a return on equity of 19.44%. The business had revenue of $26.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.62 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 17.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Humana Inc. will post 16.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Humana Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 29th will be given a dividend of $0.885 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $3.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.12%. Humana’s payout ratio is 17.86%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Jorge S. Mesquita bought 545 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $367.09 per share, for a total transaction of $200,064.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,578 shares in the company, valued at $946,358.02. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.29% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on HUM. Argus lowered Humana from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Barclays reduced their price target on Humana from $356.00 to $310.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Mizuho reduced their price target on Humana from $550.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 26th. StockNews.com downgraded Humana from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Raymond James initiated coverage on Humana in a report on Friday, March 22nd. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. Eleven 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.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $465.42.

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.