The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) Sets New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $158.77 and last traded at $158.77, with a volume of 1297 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $150.15.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on THG shares. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on 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. JMP Securities lifted their price target on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $158.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on The Hanover Insurance Group from $162.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on The Hanover Insurance Group from $142.00 to $144.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $168.20.

The Hanover Insurance Group Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $5.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.90 and a beta of 0.70. 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 stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $148.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $136.85.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $3.05 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 earned $0.19 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 11.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 paid a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 13th. The Hanover Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.73%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Kathy S. Lane sold 1,884 shares of The Hanover Insurance Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.23, for a total transaction of $252,889.32. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other The Hanover Insurance Group news, EVP Jeffrey M. Farber sold 12,000 shares of The Hanover Insurance Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.08, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Kathy S. Lane sold 1,884 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.23, for a total value of $252,889.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 29,303 shares of company stock worth $4,372,203. Insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On The Hanover Insurance Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of THG. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. lifted its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 2.0% in the third quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. now owns 4,202 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $622,000 after buying an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc. boosted its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc. now owns 14,693 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,176,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 2,227 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $303,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group by 8.7% during the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,336 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $168,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 35.4% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 417 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. 86.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.