Horace Mann Educators Co. (NYSE:HMN) Short Interest Update

Horace Mann Educators Co. (NYSE:HMN) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 666,800 shares, a drop of 21.1% from the February 13th total of 844,900 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 198,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.4 days. Currently, 1.6% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Insider Activity at Horace Mann Educators

In other news, Director Beverley J. Mcclure sold 2,817 shares of Horace Mann Educators stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.36, for a total transaction of $108,060.12. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 16,352 shares in the company, valued at $627,262.72. The trade was a 14.70 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Marita Zuraitis sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.40, for a total transaction of $157,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 298,324 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,753,965.60. This represents a 1.32 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 10,817 shares of company stock valued at $415,140 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 3.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Horace Mann Educators

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its position in Horace Mann Educators by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 13,269 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $521,000 after buying an additional 272 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Horace Mann Educators by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 21,690 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $851,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares during the last quarter. Sit Investment Associates Inc. boosted its position in Horace Mann Educators by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Sit Investment Associates Inc. now owns 21,825 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $856,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Horace Mann Educators by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 50,873 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,996,000 after purchasing an additional 581 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Horace Mann Educators by 389.9% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 779 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 620 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.28% of the company’s stock.

Horace Mann Educators Stock Up 0.8 %

HMN stock traded up $0.32 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $41.91. 161,095 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 220,054. The company has a market cap of $1.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.90 and a beta of 0.25. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $39.78 and its 200-day moving average price is $38.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 0.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Horace Mann Educators has a 52 week low of $31.81 and a 52 week high of $43.53.

Horace Mann Educators (NYSE:HMN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The insurance provider reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by $0.58. Horace Mann Educators had a net margin of 6.44% and a return on equity of 10.58%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Horace Mann Educators will post 3.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Horace Mann Educators Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. This is a boost from Horace Mann Educators’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.34%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Horace Mann Educators’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.45%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on HMN shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Horace Mann Educators from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Horace Mann Educators from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Horace Mann Educators in a report on Friday, February 7th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $43.67.

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.