GSA Capital Partners LLP Purchases New Shares in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. $THG

GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new stake in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 2,390 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $512,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group by 61.0% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 88,367 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $15,371,000 after purchasing an additional 33,495 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 1,568.9% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 751 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $131,000 after purchasing an additional 706 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 21.6% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 218,753 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $38,052,000 after purchasing an additional 38,905 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 6.4% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 129,031 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $22,445,000 after acquiring an additional 7,712 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group by 7.7% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 283,484 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $48,155,000 after purchasing an additional 20,294 shares during the period. 86.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other The Hanover Insurance Group news, Director Jane D. Carlin sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.50, for a total value of $231,500.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 2,270 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $525,505. This represents a 30.58% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Dennis Francis Kerrigan sold 6,551 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.79, for a total value of $1,446,395.29. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 12,003 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,650,142.37. This trade represents a 35.31% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 9,655 shares of company stock worth $2,145,846. Insiders own 2.80% of the company’s stock.

The Hanover Insurance Group Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:THG opened at $223.23 on Friday. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $166.54 and a 52-week high of $236.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a current ratio of 0.38. The company has a market capitalization of $7.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.66 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $217.00 and a 200 day simple moving average of $193.36.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The insurance provider reported $5.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.84 by $1.47. The Hanover Insurance Group had a return on equity of 21.72% and a net margin of 11.17%.The firm had revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.65 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.35 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 20.17 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hanover Insurance Group declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, May 13th that permits the company to repurchase $700.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the insurance provider to reacquire up to 10.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

The Hanover Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th were paid a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 12th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The Hanover Insurance Group’s payout ratio is 18.14%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on THG. Citigroup reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a report on Friday, July 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $220.00 to $222.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (a)” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. BMO Capital Markets cut shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $194.00 to $203.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $225.71.

The Hanover Insurance Group Profile

The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc (NYSE: THG) is a property and casualty insurance company that provides a range of commercial and personal insurance products. Through its subsidiary companies, Hanover offers coverage for businesses of all sizes, including workers’ compensation, general liability, commercial auto, and professional liability. On the personal lines side, the company underwrites homeowners, personal auto, flood, and umbrella policies designed to meet the needs of individuals and families.

In addition to its core commercial and personal insurance offerings, Hanover maintains a specialty arm that focuses on niche markets through tailored product solutions.