The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) Stake Lifted by Vestcor Inc

Vestcor Inc raised its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) by 1,526.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 16,233 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 15,235 shares during the quarter. Vestcor Inc’s holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group were worth $2,511,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of THG. Swiss National Bank boosted its position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 70,700 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $10,934,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 91.9% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 213 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in The Hanover Insurance Group in the fourth quarter worth about $21,797,000. Markel Group Inc. grew its position in The Hanover Insurance Group by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 267,000 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $41,294,000 after buying an additional 13,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 15.7% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 9,031 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,397,000 after buying an additional 1,226 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.61% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on THG shares. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays upgraded The Hanover Insurance Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on The Hanover Insurance Group from $176.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on The Hanover Insurance Group from $161.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott downgraded 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 report on Thursday, November 21st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $175.25.

The Hanover Insurance Group Price Performance

NYSE THG opened at $169.58 on Friday. 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 Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $119.66 and a 1 year high of $173.30. The company has a market cap of $6.09 billion, a PE ratio of 14.51 and a beta of 0.65. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $159.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $154.99.

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 (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, analysts predict that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 14.37 EPS for the current year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The firm 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 $0.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.12%. The Hanover Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.80%.

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.