Norges Bank Purchases New Position in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM)

Norges Bank purchased a new position in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 1,640,462 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $416,202,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in shares of Humana in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Humana in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA lifted its position in Humana by 56.3% during the fourth quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 125 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Humana during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Atwood & Palmer Inc. increased its stake in shares of Humana by 64.5% in the 4th quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. now owns 153 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. 92.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Timothy S. Huval sold 3,703 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 31st. The stock was 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 directly owns 8,181 shares in the company, valued at $2,096,463.06. This represents a 31.16 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Humana Stock Performance

HUM stock opened at $263.95 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $31.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.76 and a quick ratio of 1.76. Humana Inc. has a 1 year low of $213.31 and a 1 year high of $406.46. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $270.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $274.38.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The insurance provider reported ($2.16) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($2.26) by $0.10. Humana had a return on equity of 11.70% and a net margin of 1.02%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Humana Inc. will post 16.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Humana Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be given a $0.885 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. This represents a $3.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.34%. Humana’s payout ratio is presently 35.58%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Humana from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Humana from $257.00 to $256.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Humana from $260.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $290.00 target price on shares of Humana in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on Humana from $270.00 to $288.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Eighteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Humana presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $285.68.

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.