The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) Trading Down 1.1% – Here’s What Happened

The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) shares were down 1.1% on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $152.81 and last traded at $153.17. Approximately 16,483 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 91% from the average daily volume of 174,832 shares. The stock had previously closed at $154.85.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on THG shares. Janney Montgomery Scott lowered shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $176.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on The Hanover Insurance Group from $164.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on The Hanover Insurance Group from $161.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. JMP Securities upped their price objective on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $170.00 target price for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $174.13.

The Hanover Insurance Group Trading Up 2.3 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.40. The company’s fifty day moving average is $156.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $142.74. The company has a market cap of $5.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.23 and a beta of 0.71.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $3.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.65 by $0.40. The company had revenue of $1.57 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. The Hanover Insurance Group had a net margin of 5.92% and a return on equity of 15.53%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.19 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 11.41 EPS for the current year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors 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 2.35%. This is a positive change from The Hanover Insurance Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. The Hanover Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at The Hanover Insurance Group

In other news, EVP Jeffrey M. Farber sold 4,800 shares of The Hanover Insurance Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.41, for a total transaction of $721,968.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 80,790 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,151,623.90. The trade was a 5.61 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 29,051 shares of company stock valued at $4,556,803. 2.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new stake in The Hanover Insurance Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new position in The Hanover Insurance Group during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group during the third quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.61% of the company’s stock.

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.