Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC Makes New $205,000 Investment in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG)

Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,324 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $205,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in The Hanover Insurance Group in the 4th quarter worth about $15,137,000. Interval Partners LP increased its position in The Hanover Insurance Group by 48.5% in the 4th quarter. Interval Partners LP now owns 96,845 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $14,978,000 after purchasing an additional 31,613 shares during the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its position in The Hanover Insurance Group by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 324,761 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $50,228,000 after purchasing an additional 5,245 shares during the last quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC increased its position in The Hanover Insurance Group by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 67,647 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $10,462,000 after purchasing an additional 5,012 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth acquired a new position in The Hanover Insurance Group in the 4th quarter worth about $1,081,000. 86.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

The Hanover Insurance Group Stock Performance

THG opened at $168.43 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.41 and a beta of 0.44. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $165.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $160.92. 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 Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $119.66 and a 12-month high of $176.16.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The insurance provider reported $3.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.58 by $0.29. The firm had revenue of $1.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.55 billion. The Hanover Insurance Group had a return on equity of 18.01% and a net margin of 6.83%. The company’s revenue was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.08 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 14.37 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. The Hanover Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling at The Hanover Insurance Group

In other The Hanover Insurance Group news, EVP Bryan J. Salvatore sold 10,526 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.60, for a total value of $1,753,631.60. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 25,864 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,308,942.40. This trade represents a 28.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO John C. Roche sold 301 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $52,675.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 124,414 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,772,450. This represents a 0.24% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 11,027 shares of company stock valued at $1,841,309 in the last 90 days. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

THG has been the topic of several research reports. JMP Securities upped their target price on The Hanover Insurance Group from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. StockNews.com upgraded The Hanover Insurance Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on The Hanover Insurance Group from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Barclays upgraded The Hanover Insurance Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on The Hanover Insurance Group from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, The Hanover Insurance Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $179.50.

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.