American Century Companies Inc. Acquires 130,054 Shares of The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG)

American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) by 15.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 958,858 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 130,054 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc.’s holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group were worth $148,297,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new stake in The Hanover Insurance Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in The Hanover Insurance Group during the third quarter valued at $30,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in The Hanover Insurance Group by 91.9% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 213 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 49.5% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 272 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Bay Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of The Hanover Insurance Group by 502.1% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 283 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 236 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.61% of the company’s stock.

The Hanover Insurance Group Stock Performance

NYSE:THG opened at $170.21 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.40. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $161.64 and its 200 day moving average is $156.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.12 billion, a PE ratio of 14.56 and a beta of 0.65. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $119.66 and a fifty-two week high of $173.30.

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

The Hanover Insurance Group Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on THG shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on The Hanover Insurance Group from $161.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on The Hanover Insurance Group from $176.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Barclays raised shares of The Hanover Insurance Group to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of 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. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $175.25.

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.