Brown Advisory Inc. Acquires 413 Shares of Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM)

Brown Advisory Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) by 17.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,724 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 413 shares during the quarter. Brown Advisory Inc.’s holdings in Humana were worth $1,247,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Humana in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Gradient Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Humana by 200.0% in the fourth quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 60 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Trust Company N.A bought a new position in shares of Humana in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Humana in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Operose Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Humana in the third quarter worth about $56,000. 92.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Humana Stock Performance

Shares of HUM opened at $349.30 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market cap of $42.09 billion, a PE ratio of 21.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.50. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $324.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $371.63. Humana Inc. has a 12-month low of $298.61 and a 12-month high of $530.54.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The insurance provider reported $7.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.12 by $1.11. The business had revenue of $29.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.52 billion. Humana had a net margin of 1.82% and a return on equity of 17.76%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $9.38 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Humana Inc. will post 16.18 EPS for the current year.

Humana Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be issued a $0.885 dividend. This represents a $3.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 28th. Humana’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on HUM shares. Raymond James started coverage on shares of Humana in a report on Friday, March 22nd. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Humana from $334.00 to $326.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Humana from $550.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price 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. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald cut their target price on shares of Humana from $391.00 to $360.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $426.39.

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.