NFJ Investment Group LLC Has $9.30 Million Holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. $THG

Key Points

• NFJ Investment Group LLC increased its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 18.3%, now owning approximately $9.30 million worth of shares.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for The Hanover Insurance Group, with a price target averaging around $185.13.
• The company recently reported a quarterly earnings per share of $4.35, beating estimates, while also announcing a $0.90 quarterly dividend for investors.

NFJ Investment Group LLC grew its position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG - Free Report) by 18.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 53,452 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 8,257 shares during the quarter. NFJ Investment Group LLC owned about 0.15% of The Hanover Insurance Group worth $9,298,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 0.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,635,173 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $632,338,000 after acquiring an additional 21,221 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 9.3% during the first quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 940,522 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $163,604,000 after acquiring an additional 80,262 shares during the period. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 45.1% during the first quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 907,760 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $157,905,000 after acquiring an additional 282,233 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 59.3% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 457,809 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $79,032,000 after acquiring an additional 170,453 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 5.9% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 389,634 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $67,777,000 after acquiring an additional 21,588 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.61% of the company's stock.

The Hanover Insurance Group Price Performance

NYSE THG traded down $3.76 on Friday, reaching $177.58. The company's stock had a trading volume of 194,133 shares, compared to its average volume of 181,865. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $142.48 and a twelve month high of $181.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.37. The stock has a market cap of $6.35 billion, a PE ratio of 11.69 and a beta of 0.46. The firm's 50 day moving average is $169.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $167.78.

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, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.07 by $1.28. The Hanover Insurance Group had a net margin of 8.67% and a return on equity of 20.24%. The company had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.60 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.88 EPS. The Hanover Insurance Group's revenue was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 12th will be issued a $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 12th. The Hanover Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 23.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of 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 raised shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $188.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. JMP Securities set a $205.00 price objective on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, The Hanover Insurance Group currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $185.13.

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.