The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. $THG Shares Purchased by New York State Teachers Retirement System

Key Points

• The New York State Teachers Retirement System increased its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 7.1% during the second quarter, now holding approximately 52,576 shares valued at $8.93 million.
• Wall Street analysts have generally rated the stock positively, with a consensus target price of $188.00, and several brokerages upgrading the stock to an "outperform" rating.
• The Hanover Insurance Group reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $4.35 for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations by $1.28, despite revenue slightly below estimates at $1.58 billion.

New York State Teachers Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG - Free Report) by 7.1% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 52,576 shares of the insurance provider's stock after buying an additional 3,469 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned about 0.15% of The Hanover Insurance Group worth $8,931,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group by 47.2% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 499 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $87,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in The Hanover Insurance Group by 4.1% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 8,693 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,512,000 after buying an additional 342 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 15,612 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $2,715,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new stake in The Hanover Insurance Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $209,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 55.2% during the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,322 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $230,000 after buying an additional 470 shares in the last quarter. 86.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on THG. 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 for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. JMP Securities set a $205.00 price objective on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Citigroup reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on The Hanover Insurance Group from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $188.00.

The Hanover Insurance Group Price Performance

The Hanover Insurance Group stock opened at $171.01 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.26 and a beta of 0.44. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $145.17 and a 1 year high of $186.46. The business has a 50-day moving average of $176.18 and a 200-day moving average of $169.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The insurance provider reported $4.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.07 by $1.28. The Hanover Insurance Group had a return on equity of 20.24% and a net margin of 8.67%.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 previous year, the company earned $1.88 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Friday, September 12th were given a $0.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 12th. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The Hanover Insurance Group's payout ratio is currently 23.70%.

About The Hanover Insurance Group

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.

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