HANOVER INSURANCE GROUP INC

INTEREST RATE SENSITIVITY

The valuation of the investment portfolio is subject to risk resulting from interest rate fluctuations, which may adversely impact the valuation of the investment portfolio. In a rising interest rate environment, the value of the fixed maturity sector, which comprises approximately 87% of our investment portfolio, may decline as a result of decreases in the fair value of the securities. Our intent is to hold securities to maturity and recover the decline in valuation as prices accrete to par. However, our intent may change prior to maturity due to changes in the financial markets, our analysis of an issuer’s credit metrics and prospects, or as a result of changes in cash flow needs.

Interest rate fluctuations may also reduce net investment income and, as a result, profitability. In an increasing rate environment, the duration of our fixed maturity portfolio could lengthen as issuers choose not to exercise their option to call or prepay their debt. For this and other reasons, funds may not be available to invest at higher interest rates. Also, in a declining interest rate environment, prepayments and calls may increase as issuers exercise their option to refinance at lower rates. The resulting funds would be reinvested at lower yields.

The following table illustrates the estimated impact on the fair value of our fixed maturity portfolio at December 31, 2023 and 2022 of hypothetical changes in prevailing interest rates, defined as changes in interest rates on U.S. Treasury debt. It does not reflect changes in credit spreads, liquidity spreads and other factors that also affect the value of securities. Since changes in prevailing interest rates are often accompanied by changes in these other factors, the reader should not assume that an actual change in interest rates would result in the values illustrated.

Our investment strategy seeks to balance the goals of liquidity, capital preservation, net investment income stability and total return. The allocation process takes into consideration the profile and expected payout pattern of our liabilities, the level of capital required to support growth across lines of business and the risk profiles of a wide range of asset classes.

The majority of our assets are invested in investment grade fixed income securities across various sectors including U.S. government, municipal, corporate, residential and commercial mortgage-backed securities and other asset-backed securities. Our holdings are diversified within and across major investment and industry sectors to mitigate concentration risk. We monitor the credit quality of our investments and our exposure to individual markets, borrowers, industries, sectors and, in the case of commercial mortgage-backed securities and commercial mortgage loan participations, property types and geographic locations. In addition, we currently carry debt that is subject to interest rate risk, which was issued at fixed interest rates between 2.50% and 8.207%.

EQUITY PRICE RISK

Our equity securities portfolio is exposed to equity price risk arising from potential volatility in equity market prices. Portfolio characteristics are analyzed regularly and price risk is actively managed through a variety of techniques. A hypothetical increase or decrease of 10% in the market price of our equity securities would have resulted in an increase or decrease in the fair value of the equity securities portfolio of approximately $13 million at December 31, 2023 and approximately $24 million at December 31, 2022, which amounts, after taxes, would be reported in net income.