Lazard Asset Management LLC Boosts Stock Position in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM)

Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) by 8.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 406,993 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 30,778 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned 0.34% of Humana worth $141,110,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barlow Wealth Partners Inc. purchased a new position in Humana in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,977,000. Auxano Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Humana in the fourth quarter worth about $540,000. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Humana by 46.2% in the fourth quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 42,287 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $19,359,000 after acquiring an additional 13,356 shares in the last quarter. AdvisorShares Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Humana in the fourth quarter worth about $421,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in Humana by 0.4% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 61,897 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $21,462,000 after acquiring an additional 264 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on HUM shares. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on Humana from $415.00 to $353.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Humana from $334.00 to $326.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Baird R W raised Humana to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Humana from $413.00 to $350.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on Humana from $450.00 to $385.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $402.60.

Humana Price Performance

Shares of Humana stock traded up $6.23 on Friday, reaching $392.63. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,003,973 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,301,923. The company has a market capitalization of $47.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.45, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.51. Humana Inc. has a 52-week low of $298.61 and a 52-week high of $530.54. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $365.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $347.02. The company has a quick ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77.

Humana (NYSE:HUM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The insurance provider reported $7.23 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.12 by $1.11. The business had revenue of $29.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $28.52 billion. Humana had a return on equity of 17.76% and a net margin of 1.82%. The business’s revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $9.38 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Humana Inc. will post 16.27 EPS for the current year.

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.