Humana (NYSE:HUM) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.68 EPS

Humana (NYSE:HUM) issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The insurance provider reported $4.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.48 by $0.68, reports. The firm had revenue of $29.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.66 billion. Humana had a net margin of 1.18% and a return on equity of 13.20%. Humana updated its FY 2024 guidance to 16.000- EPS and its FY24 guidance to at least $16.00 EPS.

Humana Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:HUM traded up $2.88 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $260.71. The company had a trading volume of 1,424,246 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,856,202. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $297.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $334.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The stock has a market cap of $31.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.50. Humana has a 52-week low of $213.31 and a 52-week high of $527.18.

Humana Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $0.885 dividend. This represents a $3.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.36%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. Humana’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.36%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HUM has been the subject of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Humana from $332.00 to $396.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Humana from $400.00 to $265.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Leerink Partners lowered shares of Humana from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $400.00 to $250.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Humana from $380.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered shares of Humana from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $392.00 to $274.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nineteen have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $315.48.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Humana

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Mendota Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Humana by 9.2% in the 2nd quarter. Mendota Financial Group LLC now owns 319 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $119,000 after buying an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its holdings in Humana by 17.0% during the second quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 213 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $80,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in Humana by 111.4% during the second quarter. CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. now owns 74 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in Humana by 10.5% during the second quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 432 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $161,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted its holdings in Humana by 1.0% during the second quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft now owns 4,421 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,649,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. 92.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.