Park Avenue Securities LLC Increases Stake in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM)

Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its position in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM - Free Report) by 77.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,635 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,778 shares during the quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC's holdings in Humana were worth $2,191,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Humana by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,357,420 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,701,582,000 after purchasing an additional 53,272 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Humana by 23.4% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,388,859 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,073,387,000 after buying an additional 643,291 shares during the period. Pzena Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Humana by 8.1% during the third quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 2,506,250 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $793,830,000 after buying an additional 187,903 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in shares of Humana by 118.9% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,425,302 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $532,564,000 after acquiring an additional 774,085 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc raised its stake in Humana by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,183,985 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $442,396,000 after acquiring an additional 24,842 shares during the last quarter. 92.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Humana Price Performance

NYSE HUM traded up $6.83 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $282.63. 1,829,765 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,581,703. The company has a market capitalization of $34.03 billion, a PE ratio of 25.03, a PEG ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.76 and a quick ratio of 1.76. Humana Inc. has a 52-week low of $213.31 and a 52-week high of $415.73. The firm's 50-day moving average is $273.81 and its 200-day moving average is $308.04.

Humana (NYSE:HUM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $4.16 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.48 by $0.68. The firm had revenue of $29.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $28.66 billion. Humana had a return on equity of 13.20% and a net margin of 1.18%. Equities analysts forecast that Humana Inc. will post 16.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Humana Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a $0.885 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $3.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.25%. Humana's payout ratio is 31.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. UBS Group dropped their price target on Humana from $380.00 to $250.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 4th. KeyCorp initiated coverage on shares of Humana in a report on Friday, October 11th. They issued a "sector weight" rating on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Humana from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $519.00 to $253.00 in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Bank of America raised shares of Humana from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $247.00 to $308.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer decreased their target price on shares of Humana from $400.00 to $280.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Twenty research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Humana currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $302.70.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Timothy S. Huval sold 3,703 shares of Humana stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.26, for a total value of $948,930.78. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 8,181 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,096,463.06. This trade represents a 31.16 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.