Swiss National Bank Buys 500 Shares of The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG)

Swiss National Bank raised its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 70,700 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group were worth $10,934,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 91.9% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 213 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 49.5% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 272 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Bay Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 502.1% in the 4th quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 283 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 236 shares in the last quarter. 86.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

The Hanover Insurance Group Price Performance

The Hanover Insurance Group stock opened at $171.23 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $6.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.65 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.40 and a quick ratio of 0.40. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $119.66 and a 1 year high of $173.30. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $161.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $156.00.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The insurance provider reported $5.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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, research analysts forecast that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 14.37 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.10%. The Hanover Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.80%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on THG. Janney Montgomery Scott cut shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $176.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $176.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays raised shares of The Hanover Insurance Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $161.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $175.25.

The Hanover Insurance Group 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.