The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) was in 10 hedge funds’ portfolio at the end of the first quarter of 2013. THG investors should be aware of an increase in enthusiasm from smart money in recent months. There were 6 hedge funds in our database with THG holdings at the end of the previous quarter.
In the financial world, there are tons of gauges shareholders can use to watch the equity markets. Two of the most useful are hedge fund and insider trading sentiment. At Insider Monkey, our studies have shown that, historically, those who follow the best picks of the top hedge fund managers can outclass their index-focused peers by a superb margin (see just how much).
Equally as key, positive insider trading sentiment is another way to parse down the marketplace. As the old adage goes: there are many reasons for a corporate insider to cut shares of his or her company, but just one, very simple reason why they would behave bullishly. Many empirical studies have demonstrated the valuable potential of this strategy if piggybackers understand what to do (learn more here).
Keeping this in mind, it’s important to take a glance at the key action encompassing The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG).
What does the smart money think about The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG)?
At the end of the first quarter, a total of 10 of the hedge funds we track held long positions in this stock, a change of 67% from the first quarter. With hedgies’ positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists a few key hedge fund managers who were upping their stakes considerably.
Now, key hedge funds were leading the bulls’ herd. Citadel Investment Group, managed by Ken Griffin, initiated the most outsized position in The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG). Citadel Investment Group had 6.1 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Glenn Russell Dubin’s Highbridge Capital Management also made a $5 million investment in the stock during the quarter. The other funds with brand new THG positions are Israel Englander’s Millennium Management, Matthew Tewksbury’s Stevens Capital Management, and Douglas W. Case’s Advanced Investment Partners.
What do corporate executives and insiders think about The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG)?
Insider trading activity, especially when it’s bullish, is at its handiest when the company in question has experienced transactions within the past 180 days. Over the last six-month time period, The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) has experienced zero unique insiders buying, and 5 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
Let’s go over hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG). These stocks are Endurance Specialty Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:ENH), Enstar Group Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESGR), Mercury General Corporation (NYSE:MCY), American National Insurance Company (NASDAQ:ANAT), and Amtrust Financial Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:AFSI). This group of stocks belong to the property & casualty insurance industry and their market caps resemble THG’s market cap.
| Company Name | # of Hedge Funds | # of Insiders Buying | # of Insiders Selling |
| Endurance Specialty Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:ENH) | 12 | 0 | 6 |
| Enstar Group Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESGR) | 8 | 1 | 3 |
| Mercury General Corporation (NYSE:MCY) | 8 | 0 | 3 |
| American National Insurance Company (NASDAQ:ANAT) | 8 | 1 | 0 |
| Amtrust Financial Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:AFSI) | 8 | 0 | 3 |
With the returns exhibited by the aforementioned studies, retail investors must always pay attention to hedge fund and insider trading sentiment, and The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) is an important part of this process.
