First Trust Advisors LP Buys 25,945 Shares of The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. $THG

Key Points

• First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 3.2% in Q1, buying 25,945 shares and bringing its total holding to 827,320 shares worth about $143.4 million.
• The company posted strong quarterly results, reporting $5.25 EPS versus estimates of $4.14 and revenue of $1.70 billion, while also announcing a quarterly dividend of $0.95 per share and a $700 million share buyback program.
• Analysts remain cautiously positive overall, with a Moderate Buy consensus and a target price of $218.29, though some recent ratings were mixed; the stock was trading near $214.10, close to its 52-week high.

First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG - Free Report) by 3.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 827,320 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 25,945 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned 2.36% of The Hanover Insurance Group worth $143,416,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Legato Capital Management LLC bought a new position in The Hanover Insurance Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,238,000. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,926,000. UBS Group AG raised its position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 58.7% during the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 149,300 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $27,288,000 after purchasing an additional 55,220 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $83,817,000. Finally, Dockside LLC bought a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in the 4th quarter worth $1,225,000. 86.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

THG has been the subject of several research reports. 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. Piper Sandler lowered shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $220.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $195.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $205.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Citigroup restated an "outperform" rating on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a report on Friday, July 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $218.29.

The Hanover Insurance Group Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of The Hanover Insurance Group stock opened at $214.10 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $203.16 and a 200 day simple moving average of $185.68. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $163.18 and a 12-month high of $225.29. The company has a market capitalization of $7.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.78 and a beta of 0.28. 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 - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The insurance provider reported $5.25 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.14 by $1.11. The business had revenue of $1.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.58 billion. The Hanover Insurance Group had a return on equity of 21.55% and a net margin of 10.77%.The Hanover Insurance Group's quarterly revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.87 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 18.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 12th were issued a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 12th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The Hanover Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 19.12%.

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

Insider Activity at The Hanover Insurance Group

In related news, Director Cynthia Egan sold 3,400 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.50, for a total value of $640,900.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 9,359 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,764,171.50. The trade was a 26.65% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Dennis Francis Kerrigan sold 6,262 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.99, for a total value of $1,208,503.38. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 11,988 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,313,564.12. This trade represents a 34.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 29,508 shares of company stock valued at $5,704,651 over the last three months. Insiders own 2.80% of the company's stock.

The Hanover Insurance Group 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.

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