The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. $THG Stake Raised by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THGFree Report) by 3.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 79,055 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,501 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group were worth $13,704,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. McMillan Office Inc. purchased a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Root Financial Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 69.3% during the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 237 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc boosted its position in The Hanover Insurance Group by 146.2% during the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 256 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. 86.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on THG. Zacks Research lowered The Hanover Insurance Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. BMO Capital Markets downgraded The Hanover Insurance Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $194.00 to $203.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $220.00 target price (up from $211.00) on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $218.29.

Check Out Our Latest Analysis on THG

The Hanover Insurance Group Price Performance

NYSE THG opened at $214.10 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $203.16 and a 200 day simple moving average of $185.68. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $163.18 and a twelve month high of $225.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.49 billion, a PE ratio of 10.78 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.37.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THGGet Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The insurance provider reported $5.25 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.14 by $1.11. The Hanover Insurance Group had a return on equity of 21.55% and a net margin of 10.77%.The company had revenue of $1.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.58 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.87 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 18.38 EPS for the current year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 12th were issued a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 12th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The Hanover Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio is 19.12%.

The Hanover Insurance Group announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, May 13th that allows the company to buyback $700.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the insurance provider to reacquire up to 10.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Cynthia Egan sold 3,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.50, for a total transaction of $640,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 9,359 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,764,171.50. This represents a 26.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Dennis Francis Kerrigan sold 6,262 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.99, for a total value of $1,208,503.38. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 11,988 shares in the company, valued at $2,313,564.12. This represents a 34.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 29,508 shares of company stock worth $5,704,651. 2.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

The Hanover Insurance Group Profile

(Free Report)

The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc (NYSE: THG) is a property and casualty insurance company that provides a range of commercial and personal insurance products. Through its subsidiary companies, Hanover offers coverage for businesses of all sizes, including workers’ compensation, general liability, commercial auto, and professional liability. On the personal lines side, the company underwrites homeowners, personal auto, flood, and umbrella policies designed to meet the needs of individuals and families.

In addition to its core commercial and personal insurance offerings, Hanover maintains a specialty arm that focuses on niche markets through tailored product solutions.

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Institutional Ownership by Quarter for The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG)

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