The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) Hits New 52-Week High - What's Next?

Key Points

• The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) reached a new 52-week high of $183.20 during trading, with the last traded price at $183.16.
• Analyst upgrades included a price target increase from $170.00 to $185.00 by Morgan Stanley, and several analysts now rate the stock as a "Moderate Buy" with an average target price of $185.13.
• The company reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $4.35, significantly higher than the consensus estimate of $3.07, and achieved a revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter.

The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $183.20 and last traded at $183.16, with a volume of 25216 shares. The stock had previously closed at $181.63.

Analyst Ratings Changes

THG has been the subject of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on The Hanover Insurance Group from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Citigroup restated an "outperform" rating on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded 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 research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, JMP Securities set a $205.00 target price on The Hanover Insurance Group in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $185.13.

The Hanover Insurance Group Stock Down 0.1%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.37. The company has a market cap of $6.49 billion, a PE ratio of 11.95 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $173.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $169.16.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The insurance provider reported $4.35 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.88 earnings per share. The Hanover Insurance Group's revenue was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 12th were issued a dividend of $0.90 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 12th. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The Hanover Insurance Group's payout ratio is presently 23.70%.

Institutional Trading of The Hanover Insurance Group

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new stake in The Hanover Insurance Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $209,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in The Hanover Insurance Group by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 82,886 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $14,418,000 after buying an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in The Hanover Insurance Group by 7.3% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 112,632 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $19,592,000 after buying an additional 7,661 shares during the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd lifted its position in The Hanover Insurance Group by 881.5% in the 1st quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 3,926 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $683,000 after buying an additional 3,526 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in The Hanover Insurance Group by 31.4% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 8,351 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,292,000 after buying an additional 1,996 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.61% of the company's stock.

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.

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