The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the nine research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $195.8333.

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on THG shares. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on The Hanover Insurance Group from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a research note on Monday, November 24th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $200.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $198.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 4th.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Denise Lowsley sold 1,619 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.47, for a total transaction of $293,799.93. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 3,511 shares in the company, valued at approximately $637,141.17. This represents a 31.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On The Hanover Insurance Group

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bayforest Capital Ltd raised its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 881.5% in the first quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 3,926 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $683,000 after buying an additional 3,526 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,635,173 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $632,338,000 after buying an additional 21,221 shares during the last quarter. Aviva PLC bought a new stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group during the second quarter worth approximately $475,000. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. grew its holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group by 252.3% in the 2nd quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 5,140 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $873,000 after buying an additional 3,681 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC increased its position in The Hanover Insurance Group by 609.9% during the first quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 78,574 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $13,668,000 after acquiring an additional 67,506 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.61% of the company’s stock.

The Hanover Insurance Group Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of THG stock opened at $185.55 on Monday. The Hanover Insurance Group has a 12-month low of $145.17 and a 12-month high of $187.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $178.04 and a 200-day moving average of $173.15. The company has a market capitalization of $6.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.73 and a beta of 0.44.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The insurance provider reported $5.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.79 by $1.30. The business had revenue of $1.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.72 billion. The Hanover Insurance Group had a net margin of 9.71% and a return on equity of 22.43%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.05 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that The Hanover Insurance Group will post 14.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 12th were paid a dividend of $0.90 per share. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 12th. The Hanover Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.82%.

The Hanover Insurance Group Company Profile

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.