The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) Receives $175.25 Consensus PT from Brokerages

The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) has received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the nine research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $175.25.

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets boosted 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on The Hanover Insurance Group from $176.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on The Hanover Insurance Group from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Barclays raised The Hanover Insurance Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th.

The Hanover Insurance Group Price Performance

NYSE:THG opened at $170.21 on Wednesday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $6.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.56 and a beta of 0.65. The Hanover Insurance Group has a 12 month low of $119.66 and a 12 month high of $173.30. The business’s 50-day moving average is $161.64 and its 200 day moving average is $156.17.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The insurance provider reported $5.32 EPS 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, equities research analysts forecast that The Hanover Insurance Group will post 14.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.90 per share. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.12%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. The Hanover Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.80%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On The Hanover Insurance Group

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,613,952 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $558,934,000 after acquiring an additional 23,565 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,489,391 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $230,349,000 after buying an additional 4,799 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,239,701 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $183,612,000 after buying an additional 3,780 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 28.6% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,217,919 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $188,363,000 after buying an additional 270,491 shares in the last quarter. Finally, T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,087,786 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $168,237,000 after buying an additional 43,918 shares in the last quarter. 86.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.