Horace Mann Educators (NYSE:HMN) Rating Increased to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Horace Mann Educators (NYSE:HMN) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report published on Thursday.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on HMN. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Horace Mann Educators from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Horace Mann Educators in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Horace Mann Educators from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.67.

Horace Mann Educators Stock Performance

Horace Mann Educators stock opened at $41.98 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 0.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock has a market cap of $1.71 billion, a PE ratio of 16.93 and a beta of 0.28. Horace Mann Educators has a 12-month low of $31.81 and a 12-month high of $43.69. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $41.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $40.38.

Horace Mann Educators (NYSE:HMN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The insurance provider reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $416.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $421.40 million. Horace Mann Educators had a net margin of 6.44% and a return on equity of 10.58%. The firm’s revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.62 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Horace Mann Educators will post 3.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Horace Mann Educators Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. This is an increase from Horace Mann Educators’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.33%. Horace Mann Educators’s payout ratio is presently 50.72%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Beverley J. Mcclure sold 2,816 shares of Horace Mann Educators stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.86, for a total transaction of $120,693.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 13,643 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $584,738.98. This trade represents a 17.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Marita Zuraitis sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.40, for a total transaction of $207,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 315,451 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,059,671.40. The trade was a 1.56 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 12,816 shares of company stock valued at $543,144. Company insiders own 4.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Horace Mann Educators

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Horace Mann Educators by 389.9% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 779 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 620 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Horace Mann Educators by 806.3% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,296 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 1,153 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Horace Mann Educators by 72.9% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,591 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 671 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Horace Mann Educators in the fourth quarter valued at $92,000. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its holdings in shares of Horace Mann Educators by 42.3% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,378 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $93,000 after purchasing an additional 707 shares during the period. 99.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Horace Mann Educators

Horace Mann Educators Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an insurance holding company in the United States. The company operates through Property & Casualty, Life & Retirement, and Supplemental & Group Benefits segments. Its Property & Casualty segment offers insurance products, including private passenger auto insurance, residential home insurance, and personal umbrella insurance; and provides auto coverages including liability and collision, and property coverage for homeowners and renters.