The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. $THG Shares Sold by New York State Teachers Retirement System

New York State Teachers Retirement System cut its stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) by 25.5% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 38,992 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 13,320 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group were worth $6,759,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in The Hanover Insurance Group by 28.5% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 639,264 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $116,110,000 after purchasing an additional 141,835 shares during the period. Legato Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group during the fourth quarter worth $1,238,000. Capula Management Ltd purchased a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group during the third quarter worth $1,877,000. UBS Group AG grew its stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 58.7% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 149,300 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $27,288,000 after buying an additional 55,220 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in the fourth quarter valued at $4,926,000. 86.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at The Hanover Insurance Group

In other news, Director Cynthia Egan sold 3,400 shares of The Hanover Insurance Group stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.50, for a total value of $640,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 9,359 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,764,171.50. The trade was a 26.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Francisco Aristeguieta sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.37, for a total transaction of $195,370.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 4,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $791,834.61. This trade represents a 19.79% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 29,508 shares of company stock worth $5,704,651 over the last three months. Company insiders own 2.80% of the company’s stock.

The Hanover Insurance Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:THG traded up $4.84 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $225.03. 48,719 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 326,414. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $195.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $183.02. The company has a market cap of $7.87 billion, a PE ratio of 11.33 and a beta of 0.28. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $160.97 and a 12-month high of $224.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The insurance provider reported $5.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 analyst estimates of $1.58 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.87 earnings per share. The Hanover Insurance Group’s revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 18.36 EPS for the current year.

The Hanover Insurance Group announced that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, May 13th that allows the company to buyback $700.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the insurance provider to buy up to 10.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

The Hanover Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th were paid a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 12th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The Hanover Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.12%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

THG has been the topic of several recent research reports. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $212.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on The Hanover Insurance Group from $195.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday. Weiss Ratings raised shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Citigroup reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Citizens Jmp raised their price target on The Hanover Insurance Group from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $210.57.

The Hanover Insurance Group Company Profile

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.