The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) Shares Down 0.2% – Here’s Why

The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) shares dropped 0.2% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $155.25 and last traded at $156.00. Approximately 15,114 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 91% from the average daily volume of 175,134 shares. The stock had previously closed at $156.31.

Analyst Ratings Changes

THG has been the topic of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on The Hanover Insurance Group in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $170.00 price objective on the stock. JMP Securities raised their target price on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $164.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $162.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott cut shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $176.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $173.29.

The Hanover Insurance Group Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $156.09 and its 200 day moving average price is $142.19. The stock has a market cap of $5.55 billion, a PE ratio of 15.29 and a beta of 0.71.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $3.05 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.65 by $0.40. The business had revenue of $1.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. The Hanover Insurance Group had a net margin of 5.92% and a return on equity of 15.53%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.19 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 11.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.90 per share. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This is a boost from The Hanover Insurance Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. The Hanover Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.73%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Jeffrey M. Farber sold 12,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.08, for a total value of $1,860,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 66,091 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,249,392.28. This trade represents a 15.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 30,551 shares of company stock valued at $4,781,935 in the last quarter. 2.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On The Hanover Insurance Group

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Cetera Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $208,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 20.0% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,931 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $619,000 after purchasing an additional 823 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 41.4% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 5,271 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $661,000 after purchasing an additional 1,544 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 20.7% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 753 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $103,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 10,048 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,260,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.61% of the company’s stock.

About The Hanover Insurance Group

The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides various property and casualty insurance products and services in the United States. The company operates through four segments: Core Commercial, Specialty, Personal Lines, and Other. The Commercial Lines segment offers commercial multiple peril, commercial automobile, workers' compensation, and other commercial lines coverage.