The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) Receives $199.00 Average PT from Analysts

The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eight research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $199.00.

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

The Hanover Insurance Group Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of THG stock opened at $186.17 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.77 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a current ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The business’s 50 day moving average is $179.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $174.68. The Hanover Insurance Group has a twelve month low of $145.17 and a twelve month high of $188.18.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The insurance provider reported $5.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.79 by $1.30. The Hanover Insurance Group had a return on equity of 21.73% and a net margin of 9.71%.The firm had revenue of $1.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.72 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.05 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that The Hanover Insurance Group will post 14.37 EPS for the current year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. This is an increase from The Hanover Insurance Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. The Hanover Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio is 21.98%.

Insider Activity at The Hanover Insurance Group

In other news, EVP Denise Lowsley sold 1,619 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.47, for a total transaction of $293,799.93. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 3,511 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $637,141.17. This represents a 31.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in The Hanover Insurance Group during the second quarter worth $77,169,000. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 36.1% during the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,280,418 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $217,505,000 after buying an additional 339,896 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP raised its stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 166.7% during the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 346,275 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $60,235,000 after buying an additional 216,427 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 37.8% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 763,431 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $137,967,000 after buying an additional 209,616 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 206.0% in the 3rd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 292,121 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $53,058,000 after acquiring an additional 196,655 shares during the last quarter. 86.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About The Hanover Insurance Group

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.