The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) Given Average Recommendation of "Hold" by Analysts

Shares of The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average rating of "Hold" from the seven research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $173.29.

Several brokerages have recently commented on THG. Janney Montgomery Scott downgraded shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $176.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a research note on Thursday. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $170.00 price target for the company. Bank of America boosted their target price 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. JMP Securities increased 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, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on The Hanover Insurance Group from $164.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th.

Insider Activity at The Hanover Insurance Group

In related news, EVP Jeffrey M. Farber sold 1,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.11, for a total transaction of $180,132.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 85,983 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,906,908.13. This trade represents a 1.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In the last three months, insiders sold 30,551 shares of company stock valued at $4,781,935. 2.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On The Hanover Insurance Group

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Markel Group Inc. boosted its holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 254,000 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $37,620,000 after buying an additional 14,000 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group by 104.4% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 11,967 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,772,000 after purchasing an additional 6,112 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 369,545 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $54,733,000 after purchasing an additional 17,856 shares in the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in The Hanover Insurance Group in the 2nd quarter worth about $681,000. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group during the second quarter valued at about $431,000. 86.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

The Hanover Insurance Group Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of THG traded down $2.20 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $158.72. 154,309 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 174,761. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.74 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.40 and a quick ratio of 0.40. The Hanover Insurance Group has a fifty-two week low of $119.36 and a fifty-two week high of $166.13. The business has a 50-day moving average of $155.29 and a 200-day moving average of $141.51.

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

The Hanover Insurance Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.27%. This is an increase from The Hanover Insurance Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. The Hanover Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio is 33.73%.

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.