51,700 Shares in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. $THG Acquired by Hennessy Advisors Inc.

Key Points

• Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired 51,700 shares of The Hanover Insurance Group, valued at approximately $8.78 million, in the 2nd quarter, bringing their total ownership to about 0.14% of the company.
• Recent price targets from analysts for The Hanover Insurance Group range from $185.00 to $205.00, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $185.13.
• The Hanover Insurance Group reported a quarterly EPS of $4.35, exceeding analysts' estimates and marking a 3.1% year-over-year revenue increase to $1.58 billion.

Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 51,700 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $8,782,000. Hennessy Advisors Inc. owned about 0.14% of The Hanover Insurance Group at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Clearstead Trust LLC acquired a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $39,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $53,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 819.0% during the 1st quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 386 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 344 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 20.3% during the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 468 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $79,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. 86.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on THG shares. JMP Securities set a $205.00 price objective on The Hanover Insurance Group in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on The Hanover Insurance Group from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded The Hanover Insurance Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $188.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $185.13.

The Hanover Insurance Group Trading Up 1.0%

THG stock opened at $184.03 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $6.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.12 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $174.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $169.42. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $142.48 and a 52 week high of $184.97.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The insurance provider reported $4.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.07 by $1.28. The business had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.60 billion. The Hanover Insurance Group had a return on equity of 20.24% and a net margin of 8.67%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.88 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 14.37 EPS for the current year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 12th were issued a dividend of $0.90 per share. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 12th. The Hanover Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 23.70%.

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.

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