Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec Grows Holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. $THG

Key Points

• The Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec increased its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 17.2%, acquiring a total of 11,858 shares worth approximately $2.06 million.
• Wall Street analysts are optimistic about The Hanover Insurance Group, maintaining a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and setting a price target averaging around $185.13.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.90 per share, with an annualized yield of 2.0%, indicating a solid dividend payout ratio of 23.70%.

Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec increased its stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG - Free Report) by 17.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,858 shares of the insurance provider's stock after buying an additional 1,740 shares during the period. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec's holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group were worth $2,063,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Clearstead Trust LLC acquired a new position in The Hanover Insurance Group during the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in The Hanover Insurance Group by 331.4% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 302 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 232 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in The Hanover Insurance Group during the 1st quarter worth about $53,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group by 81.7% during the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 307 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in 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. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.61% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

THG has been the subject of several analyst reports. JMP Securities set a $205.00 target price on The Hanover Insurance Group in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on The Hanover Insurance Group from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research 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 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $185.13.

The Hanover Insurance Group Price Performance

NYSE:THG traded down $1.11 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $178.19. 218,554 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 244,450. The company has a market capitalization of $6.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.73 and a beta of 0.46. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $142.48 and a 1-year high of $181.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.37. The business has a 50 day moving average of $169.61 and a 200 day moving average of $168.01.

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

The Hanover Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Friday, September 12th will be given a $0.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 12th. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The Hanover Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.