The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) Shares Sold by Hunter Perkins Capital Management LLC

Hunter Perkins Capital Management LLC reduced its holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG - Free Report) by 13.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,930 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 1,680 shares during the period. Hunter Perkins Capital Management LLC's holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group were worth $1,690,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in THG. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV increased its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 7.8% in the 2nd quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 2,280 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $286,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 89.7% during the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 3,228 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $401,000 after acquiring an additional 1,526 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can increased its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 48.0% during the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 11,843 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,488,000 after acquiring an additional 3,840 shares during the last quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC bought a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $4,284,000. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC bought a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,673,000. 86.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on THG. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $165.00 to $177.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley assumed 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 target on the stock. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $158.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on The Hanover Insurance Group from $162.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on The Hanover Insurance Group from $161.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $174.88.

Insider Buying and Selling at The Hanover Insurance Group

In other news, EVP Jeffrey M. Farber sold 5,886 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.05, for a total value of $942,054.30. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 60,205 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,635,810.25. This trade represents a 8.91 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 12,100 shares of company stock valued at $1,951,223. 2.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

The Hanover Insurance Group Trading Up 2.5 %

NYSE:THG traded up $3.91 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $157.56. The stock had a trading volume of 128,402 shares, compared to its average volume of 178,481. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a one year low of $119.66 and a one year high of $166.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $156.79 and a 200 day moving average of $148.64. The company has a market capitalization of $5.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.63 and a beta of 0.72.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $3.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $1.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.67 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.19 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 11.46 EPS for the current year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th were paid a dividend of $0.90 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. This is an increase 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 2.28%. The Hanover Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.71%.

The Hanover Insurance Group 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.