State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Sells 1,149 Shares of The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG)

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D reduced its stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) by 8.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 13,296 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 1,149 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group were worth $2,056,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barclays PLC increased its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 61.5% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 27,155 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $4,022,000 after acquiring an additional 10,341 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $201,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 104.4% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 11,967 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,772,000 after buying an additional 6,112 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 82.4% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 11,500 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,702,000 after buying an additional 5,194 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oak Thistle LLC bought a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,046,000. 86.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

The Hanover Insurance Group Stock Down 1.1 %

The Hanover Insurance Group stock opened at $156.84 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $156.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $151.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The firm has a market cap of $5.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.42 and a beta of 0.72. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $119.66 and a twelve month high of $166.98.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The insurance provider reported $5.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.45 by $1.87. The Hanover Insurance Group had a return on equity of 18.01% and a net margin of 6.83%. On average, analysts forecast that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 14.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a dividend of $0.90 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.30%. This is a positive change from The Hanover Insurance Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.85. The Hanover Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.80%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

THG has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays raised The Hanover Insurance Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on The Hanover Insurance Group from $165.00 to $177.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Janney Montgomery Scott cut The Hanover Insurance Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $176.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on The Hanover Insurance Group from $161.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price objective on The Hanover Insurance Group from $162.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $175.25.

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.