Retirement Systems of Alabama Trims Stock Holdings in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM)

Retirement Systems of Alabama lessened its position in shares of Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) by 3.1% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 27,134 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 882 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Humana were worth $12,422,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its position in Humana by 30.0% during the 3rd quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 9,196 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $4,474,000 after buying an additional 2,124 shares during the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. lifted its position in Humana by 4.2% during the third quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 1,294 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $630,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Humana in the third quarter valued at $397,000. Independent Advisor Alliance grew its position in Humana by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 1,379 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $671,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Finally, SkyOak Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Humana during the 3rd quarter worth about $315,000. 92.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Humana Trading Up 4.0 %

NYSE HUM opened at $314.21 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.67 and a current ratio of 1.67. Humana Inc. has a one year low of $298.61 and a one year high of $541.21. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $325.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $390.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.86 billion, a PE ratio of 19.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.50.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The insurance provider reported $7.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 the consensus estimate of $28.52 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $9.38 EPS. Humana’s quarterly revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Humana Inc. will post 16.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Humana Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 28th will be given a $0.885 dividend. This represents a $3.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.13%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 28th. Humana’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on HUM. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Humana from $450.00 to $385.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Raymond James initiated coverage on shares of Humana in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on shares of Humana from $411.00 to $381.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Humana from $413.00 to $350.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, TheStreet lowered Humana from a “b” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $424.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Humana

In other Humana news, Director Jorge S. Mesquita purchased 545 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $367.09 per share, with a total value of $200,064.05. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 2,578 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $946,358.02. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.32% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.