Lazard Asset Management LLC Cuts Stake in Horace Mann Educators Corporation $HMN

Key Points

• Lazard Asset Management cut its Horace Mann Educators stake by 18.1% in the first quarter, selling 19,971 shares and retaining 90,198 shares worth approximately $3.85 million.
• Institutional investors own 99.28% of HMN, while several major firms—including Ameriprise, Millennium Management, Invesco and Goldman Sachs—recently increased their positions. Weiss Ratings also upgraded the stock, and analysts maintain a “Strong Buy” consensus.
• Horace Mann reported quarterly EPS of $1.28, beating estimates by $0.18, alongside $429.3 million in revenue. The company pays a $0.36 quarterly dividend, equivalent to a 2.8% yield.

Lazard Asset Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Horace Mann Educators Corporation (NYSE:HMN - Free Report) by 18.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 90,198 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 19,971 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned about 0.22% of Horace Mann Educators worth $3,850,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in Horace Mann Educators by 51.6% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 663,520 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $29,971,000 after purchasing an additional 225,800 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in Horace Mann Educators by 310.0% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 275,109 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $12,427,000 after purchasing an additional 208,014 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Horace Mann Educators by 32.0% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 645,659 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $29,164,000 after buying an additional 156,652 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new position in Horace Mann Educators in the second quarter worth about $5,749,000. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Horace Mann Educators by 63.9% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 249,579 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $11,526,000 after buying an additional 97,293 shares in the last quarter. 99.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Horace Mann Educators from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (a-)" rating in a report on Monday, June 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Strong Buy".

Horace Mann Educators Price Performance

NYSE HMN opened at $52.07 on Friday. Horace Mann Educators Corporation has a one year low of $41.01 and a one year high of $55.56. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $50.19 and a 200 day moving average of $46.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a current ratio of 0.08. The company has a market capitalization of $2.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.08 and a beta of 0.09.

Horace Mann Educators (NYSE:HMN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The insurance provider reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $429.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $319.10 million. Horace Mann Educators had a net margin of 9.63% and a return on equity of 14.15%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.07 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Horace Mann Educators Corporation will post 4.49 EPS for the current year.

Horace Mann Educators Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. Horace Mann Educators's payout ratio is presently 36.18%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Horace Mann Educators

In related news, CEO Marita Zuraitis sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.62, for a total transaction of $394,650.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 314,629 shares in the company, valued at $16,555,777.98. This represents a 2.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 15,685 shares of company stock worth $773,088 over the last three months. 3.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Horace Mann Educators

Horace Mann Educators Corporation, based in Springfield, Illinois, specializes in insurance and retirement solutions tailored to educators and school employees across the United States. Founded in 1945, the company partners with public school districts to deliver property and casualty insurance products—including auto, home and liability coverage—through a network of dedicated local agents. Its targeted approach focuses on understanding the unique needs and schedules of teachers, administrators and other school staff, distinguishing its services within the broader insurance market.

In addition to property and casualty offerings, Horace Mann provides life and disability insurance, annuities and retirement plan products designed to help educators plan for financial security beyond their teaching careers.

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