Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC Reduces Stock Position in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG)

Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC trimmed its position in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG - Free Report) by 2.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 84,138 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 2,114 shares during the period. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC owned approximately 0.23% of The Hanover Insurance Group worth $13,013,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in THG. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group by 91.9% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 213 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 49.5% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 272 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 4,675.0% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 382 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 374 shares during the last quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in The Hanover Insurance Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $68,000. Finally, Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV bought a new position in The Hanover Insurance Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $72,000. 86.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the company. JMP Securities boosted their price objective on The Hanover Insurance Group from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on The Hanover Insurance Group from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Barclays raised shares of The Hanover Insurance Group to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $163.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $179.50.

Insider Activity at The Hanover Insurance Group

In other The Hanover Insurance Group news, EVP Bryan J. Salvatore sold 10,526 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.60, for a total value of $1,753,631.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 25,864 shares in the company, valued at $4,308,942.40. The trade was a 28.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO John C. Roche sold 301 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $52,675.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 124,414 shares in the company, valued at $21,772,450. This represents a 0.24% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 11,027 shares of company stock worth $1,841,309. Insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

The Hanover Insurance Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:THG traded up $1.19 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $168.18. The company had a trading volume of 38,369 shares, compared to its average volume of 207,953. The stock has a market cap of $6.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.39 and a beta of 0.44. The company's 50 day moving average price is $165.34 and its 200 day moving average price is $161.38. The company has a current ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $119.66 and a 52-week high of $176.16.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The insurance provider reported $3.87 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.58 by $0.29. The Hanover Insurance Group had a net margin of 6.83% and a return on equity of 18.01%. The business had revenue of $1.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.55 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.08 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 14.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.14%. The Hanover Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.98%.

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.