The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. $THG Shares Sold by Hodges Capital Management Inc.

Key Points

• Hodges Capital Management Inc. reduced its holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group by 42.9% in Q1, owning 43,698 shares worth $7.60 million after selling 32,805 shares.
• Institutions hold 86.61% of The Hanover Insurance Group's stock, with several investors like Strs Ohio and Acadian Asset Management making significant changes to their stakes in Q1.
• The Hanover Insurance Group reported a $4.35 EPS, exceeding analyst expectations, along with a dividend of $0.90 per share set to be paid on September 26th.

Hodges Capital Management Inc. cut its position in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG - Free Report) by 42.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 43,698 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 32,805 shares during the period. Hodges Capital Management Inc. owned 0.12% of The Hanover Insurance Group worth $7,601,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Clearstead Trust LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased its position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 81.7% in the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 307 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 331.4% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 302 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 232 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 819.0% in the 1st quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 386 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 344 shares during the last quarter. 86.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $188.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Citigroup reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. JMP Securities set a $205.00 target price on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of 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. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, The Hanover Insurance Group presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $185.13.

The Hanover Insurance Group Stock Performance

NYSE:THG traded up $0.69 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $175.34. 36,149 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 242,776. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.53 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a 50-day moving average of $171.16 and a 200 day moving average of $168.52. 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 Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $142.48 and a 1-year high of $182.64.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The insurance provider reported $4.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 net margin of 8.67% and a return on equity of 20.24%. The Hanover Insurance Group's quarterly revenue was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.88 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 14.37 EPS for the current year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 12th will be paid a $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 12th. The Hanover Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.70%.

The Hanover Insurance Group Company 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.