Horace Mann Educators (NYSE:HMN) Cut to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Horace Mann Educators (NYSE:HMN) was downgraded from a "strong-buy" to a "buy" rating by Wall Street Zen.
• Current consensus among analysts for Horace Mann Educators is a "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $46.75.
• The company's Board of Directors approved a $50 million share buyback program, signaling confidence in the stock's value.

Horace Mann Educators (NYSE:HMN - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report issued on Saturday.

HMN has been the subject of a number of other reports. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Horace Mann Educators from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. BMO Capital Markets set a $48.00 price target on shares of Horace Mann Educators and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Horace Mann Educators in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Horace Mann Educators currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $46.75.

Horace Mann Educators Trading Down 3.1%

Shares of NYSE HMN opened at $41.22 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 0.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. Horace Mann Educators has a twelve month low of $31.95 and a twelve month high of $44.44. The company's fifty day moving average is $42.21 and its 200-day moving average is $41.38. The stock has a market cap of $1.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.93 and a beta of 0.27.

Horace Mann Educators (NYSE:HMN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The insurance provider reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.19. Horace Mann Educators had a return on equity of 11.86% and a net margin of 7.04%. The firm had revenue of $416.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $421.40 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.62 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Horace Mann Educators will post 3.87 EPS for the current year.

Horace Mann Educators announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, May 13th that allows the company to repurchase $50.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the insurance provider to reacquire up to 3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Victor Fetter acquired 3,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was bought at an average price of $44.03 per share, for a total transaction of $154,105.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 14,655 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $645,259.65. The trade was a 31.38% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Bret A. Conklin sold 15,472 shares of Horace Mann Educators stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.52, for a total value of $673,341.44. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 55,792 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,428,067.84. This represents a 21.71% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 46,198 shares of company stock worth $1,999,575. 4.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of HMN. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Horace Mann Educators by 806.3% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,296 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 1,153 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Horace Mann Educators by 69.5% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,697 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $115,000 after buying an additional 1,106 shares in the last quarter. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. acquired a new position in Horace Mann Educators during the second quarter worth $137,000. US Bancorp DE raised its position in Horace Mann Educators by 2,693.3% during the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 4,190 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $179,000 after acquiring an additional 4,040 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in Horace Mann Educators during the second quarter worth $210,000. 99.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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