Strs Ohio Invests $2.31 Million in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. $THG

Key Points

• Strs Ohio has acquired a new stake in The Hanover Insurance Group, purchasing 13,264 shares valued at approximately $2.3 million.
• The company's stock has received multiple upgrades from analysts, with price targets ranging from $188.00 to $205.00 and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."
• The Hanover Insurance Group recently reported earnings per share of $4.35 for the last quarter, significantly exceeding analyst expectations of $3.07.

Strs Ohio bought a new stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 13,264 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,307,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 0.6% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 9.3% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 45.1% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 59.3% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group by 5.9% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 389,634 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $67,777,000 after buying an additional 21,588 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.61% of the company's stock.

The Hanover Insurance Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:THG traded down $0.61 during trading on Friday, reaching $174.95. The company had a trading volume of 795,527 shares, compared to its average volume of 196,452. The firm's fifty day moving average is $171.82 and its 200 day moving average is $168.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.26 billion, a PE ratio of 11.52 and a beta of 0.46. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $142.48 and a twelve month high of $182.64. 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 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 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 analyst estimates of $1.60 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.88 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 14.37 EPS for the current year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Friday, September 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.90 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 12th. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The Hanover Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 23.70%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Citigroup reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. JMP Securities set a $205.00 price objective on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $188.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average 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.