The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) has earned an average rating of “Hold” from the nine analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $175.25.

A number of research firms have weighed in on THG. Janney Montgomery Scott downgraded The Hanover Insurance Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $176.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. JMP Securities upped their price target on The Hanover Insurance Group from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on The Hanover Insurance Group from $161.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on The Hanover Insurance Group from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on The Hanover Insurance Group from $162.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On The Hanover Insurance Group

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 7,163 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,092,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. AMG National Trust Bank increased its position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 10,776 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,658,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 4.7% in the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 1,822 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $270,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the period. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. increased its position in shares of 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 worth $622,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the period. Finally, Ironwood Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Ironwood Investment Management LLC now owns 9,703 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,501,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.61% of the company’s stock.

The Hanover Insurance Group Price Performance

Shares of THG opened at $156.84 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.40. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $156.01 and a 200 day simple moving average of $151.84. The Hanover Insurance Group has a 52-week low of $119.66 and a 52-week high of $166.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.65 billion, a PE ratio of 13.42 and a beta of 0.72.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The insurance provider reported $5.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.45 by $1.87. The Hanover Insurance Group had a return on equity of 18.01% and a net margin of 6.83%. Sell-side analysts predict that The Hanover Insurance Group will post 14.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.30%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. This is an increase from The Hanover Insurance Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. The Hanover Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.80%.

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.