Horace Mann Educators (NYSE:HMN) Hits New 12-Month High - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Horace Mann Educators' stock reached a new 52-week high at $46.31, closing at $45.68 with notable trading volume.
• Analysts maintain a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $46.75, despite varied ratings from different firms.
• The company reported a strong quarterly earnings performance, with $1.06 EPS, significantly surpassing expectations; however, revenue fell short of estimates at $302.60 million.

Horace Mann Educators Corporation (NYSE:HMN - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $46.31 and last traded at $45.68, with a volume of 188882 shares. The stock had previously closed at $45.41.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Horace Mann Educators Stock Up 0.4%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.09 and a quick ratio of 0.09. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $42.85 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $42.15. The firm has a market cap of $1.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.59 and a beta of 0.27.

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

Horace Mann Educators declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, May 13th that permits the company to repurchase $50.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the insurance provider to purchase up to 3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Horace Mann Educators

In other news, General Counsel Donald M. Carley sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.94, for a total transaction of $160,790.00. Following the sale, the general counsel owned 22,092 shares in the company, valued at $1,014,906.48. This represents a 13.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Bret A. Conklin sold 6,486 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.55, for a total value of $282,465.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 57,026 shares in the company, valued at $2,483,482.30. This trade represents a 10.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 34,498 shares of company stock worth $1,494,268. Corporate insiders own 4.00% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Horace Mann Educators

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Horace Mann Educators by 222.3% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 909 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 627 shares during the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Horace Mann Educators in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $47,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Horace Mann Educators by 69.5% during the 1st 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 during the last quarter. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. bought a new position in shares of Horace Mann Educators during the 2nd quarter valued at $137,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in shares of Horace Mann Educators by 200.7% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,636 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $156,000 after buying an additional 2,427 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.28% of the company's stock.

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.