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

Key Points

• Horace Mann Educators' shares reached a new 52-week high of $45.36 during trading, with a last recorded price of $45.09.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for the stock, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $46.75.
• The company also initiated a $50 million share repurchase plan, indicating management's belief that the shares are undervalued.

Horace Mann Educators Corporation (NYSE:HMN - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $45.36 and last traded at $45.09, with a volume of 18522 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $44.64.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on HMN shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Horace Mann Educators from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. BMO Capital Markets set a $48.00 price target on Horace Mann Educators and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Horace Mann Educators in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Horace Mann Educators from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. One equities research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Horace Mann Educators currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $46.75.

Horace Mann Educators Stock Performance

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 firm has a market cap of $1.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.61 and a beta of 0.27. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $42.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $42.01.

Horace Mann Educators (NYSE:HMN - Get Free Report) last issued 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. The business had revenue of $302.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 quarter last year, the company earned $0.20 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Horace Mann Educators Corporation will post 3.87 EPS for the current year.

Horace Mann Educators announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, May 13th that allows the company to repurchase $50.00 million in 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 board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Marita Zuraitis sold 5,000 shares of Horace Mann Educators stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.28, for a total transaction of $211,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 302,155 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,775,113.40. The trade was a 1.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Bret A. Conklin sold 4,760 shares of Horace Mann Educators stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.90, for a total value of $204,204.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 58,587 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,513,382.30. This trade represents a 7.51% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 51,198 shares of company stock valued at $2,210,975. Corporate insiders own 4.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Horace Mann Educators

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. State of Wyoming lifted its holdings in shares of Horace Mann Educators by 14.9% during the second quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 5,268 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $226,000 after purchasing an additional 684 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its holdings in shares of Horace Mann Educators by 7.4% during the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 138,799 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $5,964,000 after purchasing an additional 9,541 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its holdings in shares of Horace Mann Educators by 1.2% during the second quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 36,774 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,580,000 after purchasing an additional 431 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its holdings in shares of Horace Mann Educators by 200.7% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,636 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $156,000 after purchasing an additional 2,427 shares during the period. Finally, State of Tennessee Department of Treasury lifted its holdings in shares of Horace Mann Educators by 47.8% during the second quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 30,031 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,290,000 after purchasing an additional 9,706 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.28% of the company's stock.

Horace Mann Educators Company Profile

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.