The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) Reaches New 12-Month High - Still a Buy?

The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $165.80 and last traded at $165.62, with a volume of 15840 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $164.27.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

THG has been the topic of several recent research reports. Bank of America increased their price objective on The Hanover Insurance Group from $158.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $164.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Janney Montgomery Scott lowered shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $176.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $162.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Oppenheimer upped 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 report on Friday, November 1st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $173.83.

The Hanover Insurance Group Stock Performance

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 market capitalization of $5.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.37 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $153.40 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $140.27.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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 company had revenue of $1.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.19 EPS. Equities analysts expect that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 11.43 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th were given a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 13th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.06%. The Hanover Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 33.73%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Jeffrey M. Farber sold 1,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.11, for a total transaction of $180,132.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 85,983 shares in the company, valued at $12,906,908.13. This trade represents a 1.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 30,551 shares of company stock worth $4,781,935 over the last 90 days. 2.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On The Hanover Insurance Group

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in THG. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 344.5% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 7,254 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,074,000 after purchasing an additional 5,622 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its position in The Hanover Insurance Group by 35.0% during the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 4,013 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $656,000 after acquiring an additional 1,040 shares in the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its position in The Hanover Insurance Group by 15.9% during the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,174 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $174,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 2.6% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 660,272 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $97,816,000 after purchasing an additional 16,800 shares during the last quarter. 86.61% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About The Hanover Insurance Group

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.