The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) Share Price Passes Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Here’s What Happened

The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $144.70 and traded as high as $155.09. The Hanover Insurance Group shares last traded at $154.66, with a volume of 105,310 shares changing hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on THG. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $158.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price 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. JMP Securities lifted their price target on The Hanover Insurance Group from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on The Hanover Insurance Group from $164.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $165.00 to $177.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, The Hanover Insurance Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $174.13.

The Hanover Insurance Group Stock Up 0.5 %

The company has a market capitalization of $5.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.20 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a current ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $157.26 and its 200-day simple moving average is $144.75.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $3.05 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.65 by $0.40. The company had revenue of $1.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. The Hanover Insurance Group had a net margin of 5.92% and a return on equity of 15.53%. The business’s revenue was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.19 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 11.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a $0.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.35%. This is a boost from The Hanover Insurance Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. The Hanover Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other The Hanover Insurance Group news, EVP Jeffrey M. Farber sold 12,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.08, for a total value of $1,860,960.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 66,091 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,249,392.28. This represents a 15.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 29,051 shares of company stock valued at $4,556,803. 2.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of THG. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new stake in The Hanover Insurance Group during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in the third quarter valued at $26,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in The Hanover Insurance Group in the second quarter valued at $25,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in The Hanover Insurance Group during the third quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 226.0% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 339 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 235 shares during the last quarter. 86.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.