Bank of Nova Scotia Takes $1.60 Million Position in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. $THG

Bank of Nova Scotia acquired a new stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund acquired 7,455 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,596,000.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in The Hanover Insurance Group in the second quarter worth approximately $756,471,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $83,817,000. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 36.1% in the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,280,418 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $217,505,000 after acquiring an additional 339,896 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $69,481,000. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 37.8% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 763,431 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $137,967,000 after purchasing an additional 209,616 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.61% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

THG has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets cut shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $194.00 to $203.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Piper Sandler cut The Hanover Insurance Group from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $220.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Weiss Ratings upgraded The Hanover Insurance Group from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (a)” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Zacks Research raised The Hanover Insurance Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Citizens Jmp raised their price target on The Hanover Insurance Group from $225.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, The Hanover Insurance Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $225.71.

Insider Transactions at The Hanover Insurance Group

In other The Hanover Insurance Group news, Director Jane D. Carlin sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.50, for a total value of $231,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 2,270 shares in the company, valued at approximately $525,505. This trade represents a 30.58% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Dennis Francis Kerrigan sold 6,551 shares of The Hanover Insurance Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.79, for a total value of $1,446,395.29. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 12,003 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,650,142.37. This represents a 35.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 9,655 shares of company stock worth $2,145,846. 2.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

The Hanover Insurance Group Trading Up 0.6%

NYSE:THG opened at $228.40 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.90 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The company has a fifty day moving average of $218.72 and a 200 day moving average of $194.60. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $166.54 and a 52 week high of $236.07.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The insurance provider reported $5.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.84 by $1.47. The Hanover Insurance Group had a net margin of 11.17% and a return on equity of 21.72%. The business had revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.65 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.35 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 20.17 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th were paid a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 12th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The Hanover Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.14%.

The Hanover Insurance Group announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, May 13th that authorizes the company to repurchase $700.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the insurance provider to buy up to 10.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

About The Hanover Insurance Group

The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc (NYSE: THG) is a property and casualty insurance company that provides a range of commercial and personal insurance products. Through its subsidiary companies, Hanover offers coverage for businesses of all sizes, including workers’ compensation, general liability, commercial auto, and professional liability. On the personal lines side, the company underwrites homeowners, personal auto, flood, and umbrella policies designed to meet the needs of individuals and families.

In addition to its core commercial and personal insurance offerings, Hanover maintains a specialty arm that focuses on niche markets through tailored product solutions.