Barclays PLC Has $5.39 Million Stake in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG)

Barclays PLC grew its stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) by 28.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 34,817 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,662 shares during the period. Barclays PLC owned about 0.10% of The Hanover Insurance Group worth $5,385,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in The Hanover Insurance Group during the 4th quarter worth $201,000. Congress Asset Management Co. lifted its position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 42.5% during the fourth quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 46,091 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $7,128,000 after purchasing an additional 13,750 shares in the last quarter. Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new position in The Hanover Insurance Group during the fourth quarter worth about $1,046,000. Hodges Capital Management Inc. grew its position in The Hanover Insurance Group by 48.8% in the 4th quarter. Hodges Capital Management Inc. now owns 76,503 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $11,832,000 after purchasing an additional 25,089 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 349,125 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $53,996,000 after buying an additional 24,290 shares during the last quarter. 86.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at The Hanover Insurance Group

In other news, CEO John C. Roche sold 301 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $52,675.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 124,414 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,772,450. This represents a 0.24 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 2.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

The Hanover Insurance Group Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of The Hanover Insurance Group stock opened at $161.72 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $164.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $159.15. The company has a market cap of $5.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.83 and a beta of 0.47. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $119.66 and a 12-month high of $176.16. 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 (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 expect that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 14.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.90 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.23%. The Hanover Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.80%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on THG shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $179.00 to $171.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective 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. Piper Sandler raised their target price on The Hanover Insurance Group from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Barclays upgraded The Hanover Insurance Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, The Hanover Insurance Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $178.00.

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.