The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) Shares Purchased by Hodges Capital Management Inc.

Hodges Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) by 56.3% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 51,414 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 18,524 shares during the period. Hodges Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group were worth $7,615,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Markel Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 254,000 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $37,620,000 after acquiring an additional 14,000 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in The Hanover Insurance Group by 5.1% during the third 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 during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in The Hanover Insurance Group by 104.4% during the third 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 during the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in The Hanover Insurance Group during the second quarter worth approximately $681,000. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $431,000. 86.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on THG. Janney Montgomery Scott downgraded The Hanover Insurance Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $176.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on The Hanover Insurance Group in a research report on Thursday. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $170.00 price target for the company. Piper Sandler raised their price objective 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. JMP Securities lifted their price objective on The Hanover Insurance Group from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of 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. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, The Hanover Insurance Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $173.29.

The Hanover Insurance Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE THG opened at $160.92 on Friday. 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, Inc. has a 1-year low of $119.36 and a 1-year high of $166.13. The company has a market capitalization of $5.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.96 and a beta of 0.71. The business has a 50-day moving average of $155.29 and a 200-day moving average of $141.45.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $3.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.65 by $0.40. The firm had revenue of $1.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. The Hanover Insurance Group had a return on equity of 15.53% and a net margin of 5.92%. The Hanover Insurance Group’s quarterly revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.19 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 11.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Increases Dividend

The company 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. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.24%. This is a positive change from The Hanover Insurance Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. The Hanover Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other The Hanover Insurance Group news, EVP Jeffrey M. Farber sold 1,200 shares of the firm’s 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 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 through the SEC website. Insiders have sold 30,551 shares of company stock valued at $4,781,935 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 2.40% 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.