** Health insurer Humana HUM.N shares rise 3.5% to $261.89
** Jefferies upgrades to "buy" from "hold" and raises price target to $313, representing a 23.7% upside to the share's last close
** Attributes company's Stars diversification efforts for the bump up
** Brokerage raises FY26 EPS estimates to $14.19 vs $11.18 previously
** Also expects Medicare Advantage membership to grow by 21%
** Shares have remained under pressure since HUM last month did not provide performance commentary for 2026, despite reporting better-than-expected quarterly profit
** 9 of 28 brokerages rate the stock "buy" or higher, 18 "hold" and 1 "sell"; their median PT is $289 - LSEG data
** Stock is marginally down for the year, though last close
(Reporting by Utkarsh Tushar Hathi in Bengaluru)
((utkarshtushar.hathi@thomsonreuters.com))
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