Horace Mann Educators (NYSE:HMN) Stock Moved Down to “Hold” by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Horace Mann Educators (NYSE:HMN) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other research firms have also commented on HMN. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Horace Mann Educators from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Thursday. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and set a $59.00 target price on shares of Horace Mann Educators in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Horace Mann Educators from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.00.

Horace Mann Educators Stock Up 0.4%

HMN traded up $0.23 during trading on Friday, reaching $53.01. The stock had a trading volume of 190,608 shares, compared to its average volume of 317,729. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $47.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $47.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The company has a market capitalization of $2.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.36 and a beta of 0.09. Horace Mann Educators has a one year low of $41.29 and a one year high of $55.56.

Horace Mann Educators (NYSE:HMN) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The insurance provider reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.96. The firm had revenue of $439.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $320.00 million. Horace Mann Educators had a net margin of 10.16% and a return on equity of 16.07%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.36 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Horace Mann Educators will post 5.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Horace Mann Educators Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 16th were paid a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 16th. Horace Mann Educators’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.57%.

Insider Activity at Horace Mann Educators

In other Horace Mann Educators news, General Counsel Donald M. Carley sold 3,551 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.00, for a total value of $184,652.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel owned 25,394 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,320,488. The trade was a 12.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO Marita Zuraitis sold 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.20, for a total transaction of $354,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 286,384 shares in the company, valued at $13,517,324.80. This represents a 2.55% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 31,342 shares of company stock valued at $1,544,140 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 3.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Horace Mann Educators

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Horace Mann Educators in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $304,006,000. Wasatch Advisors LP purchased a new stake in Horace Mann Educators during the 2nd quarter valued at $72,363,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in shares of Horace Mann Educators during the 2nd quarter valued at $29,287,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in shares of Horace Mann Educators in the 2nd quarter worth $20,061,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new position in shares of Horace Mann Educators in the 2nd quarter worth $10,192,000. 99.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Horace Mann Educators Company Profile

Horace Mann Educators Corporation is an insurance and financial services company focused on serving educators and other employees of public schools. Founded in 1945 by educators, the company develops products and services with the needs of education professionals in mind. Its offerings include auto, homeowners and life insurance, as well as retirement annuities and other financial products. The company also provides supplemental insurance and services intended to help educators manage student loan debt.