The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the nine brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $175.25.

THG has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on The Hanover Insurance Group from $161.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Barclays raised The Hanover Insurance Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on The Hanover Insurance Group from $176.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Janney Montgomery Scott downgraded The Hanover Insurance Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $176.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on The Hanover Insurance Group from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th.

The Hanover Insurance Group Stock Performance

Shares of THG stock opened at $169.35 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $6.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.49 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $160.46 and a 200-day simple moving average of $155.79. The Hanover Insurance Group has a 12-month low of $119.66 and a 12-month high of $173.30.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The insurance provider reported $5.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. On average, equities analysts forecast that The Hanover Insurance Group will post 14.37 EPS for the current year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.13%. The Hanover Insurance Group’s payout ratio is currently 30.80%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On The Hanover Insurance Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 0.9% in the fourth 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 raised its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 10,776 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,658,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 4.7% during the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 1,822 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $270,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Ironwood Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Ironwood Investment Management LLC now owns 9,703 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,501,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 49.5% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 272 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. 86.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

The Hanover Insurance Group Company Profile

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.