The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) Issues Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.53 EPS

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The insurance provider reported $5.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.62 by $0.53, Zacks reports. The Hanover Insurance Group had a return on equity of 21.72% and a net margin of 11.17%. The business had revenue of $1.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.81 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $5.09 EPS.

The Hanover Insurance Group Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of The Hanover Insurance Group stock opened at $233.06 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.38 and a quick ratio of 0.38. The Hanover Insurance Group has a 1 year low of $166.54 and a 1 year high of $240.97. The firm has a market cap of $8.12 billion, a PE ratio of 11.12 and a beta of 0.23. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $225.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $199.40.

The Hanover Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th were given a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 11th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The Hanover Insurance Group’s payout ratio is presently 18.14%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

THG has been the topic of several analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on The Hanover Insurance Group from $215.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Citigroup restated a “market outperform” rating on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a research report on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from $222.00 to $232.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 18th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from a “buy (a)” rating to a “buy (a+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of The Hanover Insurance Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Two equities 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. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $231.43.

The Hanover Insurance Group Company Profile

The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc is a holding company that provides property and casualty insurance products and services through a network of independent agents. Its principal operating subsidiary is The Hanover Insurance Company, which traces its roots to 1852 and is headquartered in Worcester, Massachusetts.

The company offers personal insurance products such as automobile, homeowners, condominium, renters and umbrella coverage. Its commercial insurance business serves small and midsize businesses with products that include commercial property, general liability, commercial automobile, workers’ compensation and other specialized coverages.

The Hanover also provides specialty insurance solutions for select industries and risks, including professional liability, management liability, marine and other niche commercial exposures.