How to buy Humana shares

Humana Inc (HUM) is a leading healthcare plans business with stocks listed in the US. It opened the day at US$403.3 after a previous close of US$403.01. During the day the price has varied from a low of USD401.17 to a high of USD407.71. The latest price was USD402.45 (25 minute delay). Humana is listed on the NYSE. All prices are listed in US Dollars.

How to buy shares in Humana

1. Compare share trading platforms. To buy shares in a US company from Australia you'll need to find a trading platform that offers access to US stock markets. If you're just starting out, look for a platform with low brokerage and foreign exchange fees.
2. Open and fund your brokerage account. Complete an application with your personal and financial details, like your ID and tax file number. Fund your account with a bank transfer, credit card or debit card.
3. Search for Humana. Find the share by name or ticker symbol: HUM. Research its history to confirm it's a solid investment against your financial goals.
4. Purchase now or later. Buy today with a market order or use a limit order to delay your purchase until Humana reaches your desired price. To spread out your risk, look into dollar-cost averaging, which smooths out buying at consistent intervals and amounts.
5. Decide on how many to buy. At last close price of US$416.45, weigh your budget against a diversified portfolio that can minimise risk through the market's ups and downs. You may be able to buy a fractional share of Humana, depending on your broker.
6. Check in on your investment. Congratulations, you own a part of Humana. Optimise your portfolio by tracking how your stock — and even the business — performs with an eye on the long term. You may be eligible for dividends and shareholder voting rights on directors and management that can affect your stock.

Humana share price

Use our graph to track the performance of HUM stocks over time.

Humana shares at a glance

• Live prices
• Key figures

Information last updated 2021-03-11.

Open	US$403.3
High	US$407.71
Low	US$401.17
Close	US$402.45
Previous close	US$403.01
Change	US$-0.56
Change %	-0.139%
Volume	353,230

Information last updated 2021-04-16.

52-week range	US$353.7339 - US$473.1928
50-day moving average	US$405.9729
200-day moving average	US$408.0132
Target price	US$478.29
PE ratio	17.145
Dividend yield	US$2.5 (0.59%)
Earnings per share (TTM)	US$25.31

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The value of your investments can fall as well as rise and you may get back less than you invested. Past performance is no indication of future results.

Is it a good time to buy Humana stock?

The technical analysis gauge below displays real-time ratings for the timeframes you select. This is not a recommendation, however. It represents a technical analysis based on the most popular technical indicators: Moving Averages, Oscillators and Pivots. Finder might not concur and takes no responsibility.

Technical Analysis of Humana Inc by TradingView

Humana price performance over time

Historical closes compared with the last close of $402.45

1 week (2021-04-15)	-7.26%
1 month (2021-03-23)	-0.39%

Is Humana under- or over-valued?

Valuing Humana stock is incredibly difficult, and any metric has to be viewed as part of a bigger picture of Humana's overall performance. However, analysts commonly use some key metrics to help gauge the value of a stock.

Humana's P/E ratio

Humana's current share price divided by its per-share earnings (EPS) over a 12-month period gives a "trailing price/earnings ratio" of roughly 17x. In other words, Humana shares trade at around 17x recent earnings.

That's relatively low compared to, say, the trailing 12-month P/E ratio for the NASDAQ 100 at the end of 2019 (27.29). The low P/E ratio could mean that investors are pessimistic about the outlook for the shares or simply that they're under-valued.

Humana's PEG ratio

Humana's "price/earnings-to-growth ratio" can be calculated by dividing its P/E ratio by its growth – to give 1.4326. A low ratio can be interpreted as meaning the shares offer better value, while a higher ratio can be interpreted as meaning the shares offer worse value.

The PEG ratio provides a broader view than just the P/E ratio, as it gives more insight into Humana's future profitability. By accounting for growth, it could also help you if you're comparing the share prices of multiple high-growth companies.

Humana's EBITDA

Humana's EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) is US$5.3 billion (£3.8 billion).

The EBITDA is a measure of a Humana's overall financial performance and is widely used to measure a its profitability.

Humana financials

Revenue TTM	US$77.2 billion
Operating margin TTM	6.46%
Gross profit TTM	US$15.5 billion
Return on assets TTM	9.73%
Return on equity TTM	26.14%
Profit margin	4.36%
Book value	106.533
Market capitalisation	US$56 billion

TTM: trailing 12 months

Shorting Humana shares

There are currently 1.5 million Humana shares held short by investors – that's known as Humana's "short interest". This figure is 33.7% down from 2.3 million last month.

There are a few different ways that this level of interest in shorting Humana shares can be evaluated.

Humana's "short interest ratio" (SIR)

Humana's "short interest ratio" (SIR) is the quantity of Humana shares currently shorted divided by the average quantity of Humana shares traded daily (recently around 970316.66666667). Humana's SIR currently stands at 1.56. In other words for every 100,000 Humana shares traded daily on the market, roughly 1560 shares are currently held short.

However Humana's short interest can also be evaluated against the total number of Humana shares, or, against the total number of tradable Humana shares (the shares that aren't held by "insiders" or major long-term shareholders – also known as the "float"). In this case Humana's short interest could be expressed as 0.01% of the outstanding shares (for every 100,000 Humana shares in existence, roughly 10 shares are currently held short) or 0.0118% of the tradable shares (for every 100,000 tradable Humana shares, roughly 12 shares are currently held short).

Such a low SIR usually points to an optimistic outlook for the share price, with fewer people currently willing to bet against Humana.

Find out more about how you can short Humana stock.

Humana's environmental, social and governance track record

Environmental, social and governance (known as ESG) criteria are a set of three factors used to measure the sustainability and social impact of companies like Humana.

When it comes to ESG scores, lower is better, and lower scores are generally associated with lower risk for would-be investors.

Humana's total ESG risk score

Total ESG risk: 25.71

Socially conscious investors use ESG scores to screen how an investment aligns with their worldview, and Humana's overall score of 25.71 (as at 12/31/2018) is pretty good – landing it in it in the 33rd percentile of companies rated in the same sector.

ESG scores are increasingly used to estimate the level of risk a company like Humana is exposed to within the areas of "environmental" (carbon footprint, resource use etc.), "social" (health and safety, human rights etc.), and "governance" (anti-corruption, tax transparency etc.).

Humana's environmental score

Environmental score: 2.6/100

Humana's environmental score of 2.6 puts it squarely in the 3rd percentile of companies rated in the same sector. This could suggest that Humana is a leader in its sector terms of its environmental impact, and exposed to a lower level of risk.

Humana's social score

Social score: 18.54/100

Humana's social score of 18.54 puts it squarely in the 3rd percentile of companies rated in the same sector. This could suggest that Humana is a leader in its sector when it comes to taking good care of its workforce and the communities it impacts.

Humana's governance score

Governance score: 5.07/100

Humana's governance score puts it squarely in the 3rd percentile of companies rated in the same sector. That could suggest that Humana is a leader in its sector when it comes to responsible management and strategy, and exposed to a lower level of risk.

Humana's controversy score

Controversy score: 2/5

ESG scores also evaluate any incidences of controversy that a company has been involved in. Humana scored a 2 out of 5 for controversy – the second-highest score possible, reflecting that Humana has, for the most part, managed to keep its nose clean.

Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) summary

Humana Inc was last rated for ESG on: 2019-01-01.

Total ESG score	25.71
Total ESG percentile	32.96
Environmental score	2.6
Environmental score percentile	3
Social score	18.54
Social score percentile	3
Governance score	5.07
Governance score percentile	3
Level of controversy	2

Humana share dividends

Dividend payout ratio: 13.74% of net profits

Recently Humana has paid out, on average, around 13.74% of net profits as dividends. That has enabled analysts to estimate a "forward annual dividend yield" of 0.66% of the current stock value. This means that over a year, based on recent payouts (which are sadly no guarantee of future payouts), Humana shareholders could enjoy a 0.66% return on their shares, in the form of dividend payments. In Humana's case, that would currently equate to about $2.5 per share.

While Humana's payout ratio might seem low, this can signify that Humana is investing more in its future growth.

Humana's most recent dividend payout was on 29 April 2021. The latest dividend was paid out to all shareholders who bought their shares by 29 March 2021 (the "ex-dividend date").

Have Humana's shares ever split?

Humana's shares were split on a 3:2 basis on 31 July 1991. So if you had owned 2 shares the day before before the split, the next day you'd have owned 3 shares. This wouldn't directly have changed the overall worth of your Humana shares – just the quantity. However, indirectly, the new 33.3% lower share price could have impacted the market appetite for Humana shares which in turn could have impacted Humana's share price.

Humana share price volatility

Over the last 12 months, Humana's shares have ranged in value from as little as US$353.7339 up to US$473.1928. A popular way to gauge a stock's volatility is its "beta".

Beta is a measure of a share's volatility in relation to the market. The market (NYSE average) beta is 1, while Humana's is 0.8803. This would suggest that Humana's shares are less volatile than average (for this exchange).

Humana overview

Humana Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a health and well-being company in the United States. It operates through Retail, Group and Specialty, and Healthcare Services segments. The company offers medical and supplemental benefit plans to individuals. It also 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. In addition, the company provides commercial fully-insured medical and specialty health insurance benefits comprising dental, vision, and other supplemental health benefits; and administrative services only products to individuals and employer groups, as well as military services, such as TRICARE T2017 East Region contract. Further, it offers pharmacy solutions, provider services, predictive modeling and informatics services, and clinical care services, such as home health and other services to its health plan members, as well as to third parties. As of December 31, 2020, the company had approximately 17 million members in medical benefit plans, as well as approximately 5 million members in specialty products. Humana Inc. was incorporated in 1964 and is headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky.

Frequently asked questions

• What percentage of Humana is owned by insiders or institutions?

  Currently 0.247% of Humana shares are held by insiders and 96.909% by institutions.

• When does the fiscal year end for Humana?

  Humana's fiscal year ends in December.

• Where is Humana based?

  Humana's address is: Humana Building, Louisville, KY, United States, 40202

• What is Humana's ISIN number?

  Humana's international securities identification number is: US4448591028

• What is Humana's CUSIP number?

  Humana's Committee on Uniform Securities Identification Procedures number is: 444859102