Victory Capital Management Inc. Sells 20,723 Shares of The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG)

Victory Capital Management Inc. lessened its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) by 2.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 780,559 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 20,723 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group were worth $120,721,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Private Advisor Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $222,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in The Hanover Insurance Group by 28.9% in the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 6,355 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $941,000 after purchasing an additional 1,424 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in The Hanover Insurance Group in the third quarter worth $60,000. Markel Group Inc. boosted its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 5.8% during the third quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 254,000 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $37,620,000 after buying an additional 14,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atria Investments Inc increased its holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group by 7.8% in the 3rd quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 2,734 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $405,000 after buying an additional 197 shares during the period. 86.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

THG has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $176.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Janney Montgomery Scott cut shares of 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 note on Thursday, November 21st. Barclays upgraded The Hanover Insurance Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price 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, BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on The Hanover Insurance Group from $161.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, The Hanover Insurance Group has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $175.25.

The Hanover Insurance Group Price Performance

NYSE:THG opened at $169.35 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $6.08 billion, a PE ratio of 14.49 and a beta of 0.72. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $119.66 and a 12 month high of $173.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $157.76 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $153.75.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The insurance provider reported $5.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.45 by $1.87. The Hanover Insurance Group had a net margin of 6.83% and a return on equity of 18.01%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 14.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Announces Dividend

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