Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Sells 49,334 Shares of The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. $THG

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lowered its position in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) by 3.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,216,240 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 49,334 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned about 3.42% of The Hanover Insurance Group worth $222,292,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in THG. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 36.1% in the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,280,418 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $217,505,000 after acquiring an additional 339,896 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 37.8% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 763,431 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $137,967,000 after acquiring an additional 209,616 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 206.0% in the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 292,121 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $53,058,000 after acquiring an additional 196,655 shares during the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. increased its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 52.9% in the second quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 558,000 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $94,787,000 after acquiring an additional 193,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 58.4% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 448,980 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $81,548,000 after acquiring an additional 165,496 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 $176.83 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $174.59 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $177.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $152.78 and a 12-month high of $188.18. The firm has a market cap of $6.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.73 and a beta of 0.29.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 20th. The insurance provider reported $5.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The Hanover Insurance Group had a net margin of 10.05% and a return on equity of 21.00%. The business had revenue of $1.67 billion during the quarter. On average, equities analysts forecast that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 14.37 EPS for the current year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th were given a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. The Hanover Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on THG shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on The Hanover Insurance Group from $200.00 to $190.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Wall Street Zen cut The Hanover Insurance Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on The Hanover Insurance Group from $207.00 to $208.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on The Hanover Insurance Group from $194.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $197.00.

Insider Activity

In other The Hanover Insurance Group news, EVP Richard W. Lavey sold 24,420 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.92, for a total transaction of $4,369,226.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 32,174 shares in the company, valued at $5,756,572.08. This represents a 43.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Jane D. Carlin sold 1,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.91, for a total transaction of $217,092.00. Following the sale, the director owned 2,423 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $438,344.93. The trade was a 33.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 2.80% of the company’s stock.

The Hanover Insurance Group Company Profile

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.