Earnest Partners LLC Lowers Stock Position in Horace Mann Educators Corporation $HMN

Key Points

• Earnest Partners LLC has reduced its stake in Horace Mann Educators Corporation by 2.8%, now owning approximately 3.19% of the company, valued at $55.55 million.
• Several institutional investors, including US Bancorp DE, have significantly increased their positions in Horace Mann, with some boosting their stakes by over 2,600%.
• Horace Mann Educators recently reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $1.06, exceeding expectations by $0.45, while also announcing a $50 million stock repurchase program.

Earnest Partners LLC trimmed its stake in Horace Mann Educators Corporation (NYSE:HMN - Free Report) by 2.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,300,078 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 36,944 shares during the period. Earnest Partners LLC owned approximately 3.19% of Horace Mann Educators worth $55,552,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in HMN. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Horace Mann Educators by 4.0% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 8,478 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $362,000 after acquiring an additional 325 shares in the last quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P grew its position in shares of Horace Mann Educators by 0.7% during the first quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P now owns 48,332 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $2,065,000 after purchasing an additional 340 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Horace Mann Educators by 1.7% during the first quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 22,275 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $952,000 after purchasing an additional 370 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Horace Mann Educators by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 29,824 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,274,000 after purchasing an additional 380 shares during the period. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in Horace Mann Educators by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 23,385 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $917,000 after acquiring an additional 810 shares in the last quarter. 99.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Horace Mann Educators Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:HMN traded up $0.16 during trading on Monday, hitting $45.94. 220,831 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 203,231. The company has a market cap of $1.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.59 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $42.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $42.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 0.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Horace Mann Educators Corporation has a 52-week low of $33.00 and a 52-week high of $46.31.

Horace Mann Educators (NYSE:HMN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The insurance provider reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.45. Horace Mann Educators had a net margin of 8.49% and a return on equity of 14.23%. The firm had revenue of $302.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $425.35 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.20 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Horace Mann Educators Corporation will post 3.87 EPS for the current year.

Horace Mann Educators announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, May 13th that authorizes the company to buyback $50.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the insurance provider to buy up to 3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Bret A. Conklin sold 4,760 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.90, for a total transaction of $204,204.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 58,587 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,513,382.30. This represents a 7.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Marita Zuraitis sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.28, for a total transaction of $211,400.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 302,155 shares in the company, valued at $12,775,113.40. The trade was a 1.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 29,498 shares of company stock worth $1,278,068. Company insiders own 4.00% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HMN has been the subject of several research reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Horace Mann Educators from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Horace Mann Educators from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. Raymond James Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Horace Mann Educators in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets set a $48.00 price objective on shares of Horace Mann Educators and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $46.75.

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.