The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) Trading 0.7% Higher – What’s Next?

The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) shares were up 0.7% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $157.78 and last traded at $156.18. Approximately 22,883 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 87% from the average daily volume of 175,001 shares. The stock had previously closed at $155.06.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $165.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America boosted their price objective on The Hanover Insurance Group from $158.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Janney Montgomery Scott cut The Hanover Insurance Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $176.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. JMP Securities boosted their price target on The Hanover Insurance Group from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a report on Thursday, December 5th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $170.00 price objective for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $173.29.

The Hanover Insurance Group Stock Up 1.0 %

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 firm has a market capitalization of $5.64 billion, a PE ratio of 15.49 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $155.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $141.85.

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

The Hanover Insurance Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.90 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This is a boost from The Hanover Insurance Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.30%. The Hanover Insurance Group’s payout ratio is currently 35.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Jeffrey M. Farber sold 12,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 66,091 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,249,392.28. This represents a 15.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders have sold 30,551 shares of company stock valued at $4,781,935 in the last ninety days. 2.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On The Hanover Insurance Group

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in The Hanover Insurance Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in The Hanover Insurance Group during the second quarter worth $42,000. 86.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.