Heartland Advisors Inc. Acquires New Position in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. $THG

Key Points

• Heartland Advisors acquired 37,549 shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in the second quarter, worth approximately $8.04 million and representing about 0.11% of the company. Institutional investors collectively own 86.61% of THG.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $225.71, while recent targets increased as high as $240.
• Hanover exceeded quarterly expectations with earnings of $5.31 per share versus the $3.84 estimate and revenue of $1.73 billion. The company also pays a $0.95 quarterly dividend and authorized a $700 million share-repurchase program.

Heartland Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 37,549 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $8,040,000. Heartland Advisors Inc. owned about 0.11% of The Hanover Insurance Group at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of THG. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. McMillan Office Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new position in The Hanover Insurance Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Clearstead Trust LLC acquired a new position in The Hanover Insurance Group during the second quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC grew its holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group by 69.3% in the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 237 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. 86.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

THG has been the topic of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Oppenheimer raised their price objective 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. Citigroup reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Citizens Jmp upped their price target on The Hanover Insurance Group from $225.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $194.00 to $203.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $225.71.

Insider Buying and Selling at The Hanover Insurance Group

In other The Hanover Insurance Group news, Director Jane D. Carlin sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.50, for a total value of $231,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 2,270 shares in the company, valued at $525,505. This represents a 30.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Dennis Francis Kerrigan sold 2,104 shares of The Hanover Insurance Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.41, for a total value of $467,950.64. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 12,003 shares in the company, valued at $2,669,587.23. This trade represents a 14.91% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 9,655 shares of company stock worth $2,145,846 over the last quarter. 2.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

The Hanover Insurance Group Trading Up 0.1%

NYSE:THG opened at $223.23 on Friday. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $166.54 and a 1 year high of $236.07. The stock has a market cap of $7.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.66 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a current ratio of 0.38. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $217.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $193.36.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The insurance provider reported $5.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.84 by $1.47. The Hanover Insurance Group had a return on equity of 21.72% and a net margin of 11.17%.The business had revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.65 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.35 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 20.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th were given a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 12th. The Hanover Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.14%.

The Hanover Insurance Group announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, May 13th that permits the company to repurchase $700.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the insurance provider to buy up to 10.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

The Hanover Insurance Group Company 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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