Ieq Capital LLC Buys New Position in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. $THG

Ieq Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 51,099 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $10,941,000. Ieq Capital LLC owned about 0.15% of The Hanover Insurance Group as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $756,471,000. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 36.1% during the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,280,418 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $217,505,000 after buying an additional 339,896 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 16.4% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 970,177 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $168,179,000 after buying an additional 136,998 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 24.9% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 953,781 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $174,322,000 after buying an additional 190,350 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 3.2% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 827,320 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $143,416,000 after buying an additional 25,945 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.61% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Piper Sandler downgraded The Hanover Insurance Group from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $220.00 price target for the company. in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. BMO Capital Markets lowered The Hanover Insurance Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $194.00 to $203.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Weiss Ratings raised The Hanover Insurance Group from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (a)” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their target price on The Hanover Insurance Group from $205.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $225.71.

The Hanover Insurance Group Price Performance

THG stock opened at $223.23 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.77 billion, a PE ratio of 10.66 and a beta of 0.27. The company’s 50-day moving average is $217.00 and its 200-day moving average is $193.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.38 and a quick ratio of 0.38. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $166.54 and a 1 year high of $236.07.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The insurance provider reported $5.31 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.84 by $1.47. The Hanover Insurance Group had a return on equity of 21.72% and a net margin of 11.17%.The business had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.65 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $4.35 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 20.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 12th were paid a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 12th. The Hanover Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.14%.

The Hanover Insurance Group announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, May 13th that allows the company to repurchase $700.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the insurance provider to buy up to 10.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Jane D. Carlin sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.50, for a total transaction of $231,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 2,270 shares in the company, valued at $525,505. The trade was a 30.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Dennis Francis Kerrigan sold 2,104 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.41, for a total value of $467,950.64. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 12,003 shares in the company, valued at $2,669,587.23. The trade was a 14.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 9,655 shares of company stock valued at $2,145,846 in the last three months. Insiders own 2.80% of the company’s stock.

About The Hanover Insurance Group

The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc (NYSE: THG) is a property and casualty insurance company that provides a range of commercial and personal insurance products. Through its subsidiary companies, Hanover offers coverage for businesses of all sizes, including workers’ compensation, general liability, commercial auto, and professional liability. On the personal lines side, the company underwrites homeowners, personal auto, flood, and umbrella policies designed to meet the needs of individuals and families.

In addition to its core commercial and personal insurance offerings, Hanover maintains a specialty arm that focuses on niche markets through tailored product solutions.