The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) Trading Up 0.7% - Here's Why

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $162.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on The Hanover Insurance Group in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $170.00 price target for the company. Janney Montgomery Scott lowered The Hanover Insurance Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $176.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on The Hanover Insurance Group from $164.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price target 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. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, The Hanover Insurance Group currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $173.29.

The Hanover Insurance Group Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $5.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.49 and a beta of 0.71. 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 50-day moving average price of $155.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $141.85.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly 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 company had revenue of $1.57 billion during 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 Hanover Insurance Group's quarterly revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.19 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 11.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In other The Hanover Insurance Group news, EVP Jeffrey M. Farber sold 1,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.11, for a total value of $180,132.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 85,983 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,906,908.13. The trade was a 1.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 30,551 shares of company stock worth $4,781,935 over the last 90 days. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of The Hanover Insurance Group

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 344.5% in the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 7,254 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,074,000 after buying an additional 5,622 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group during the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of 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 during the period. TD Private Client Wealth LLC grew its holdings 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 during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position 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 worth $97,816,000 after buying an additional 16,800 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.61% of the company's stock.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.