Ensign Peak Advisors Inc Raises Stock Holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc grew its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 5.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 417,008 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 20,535 shares during the period. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc owned 0.14% of The Hartford Financial Services Group worth $45,621,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 3,342.9% during the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 241 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. increased its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 46.5% during the fourth quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 293 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. DT Investment Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 49.8% during the 4th quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 331 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HIG has been the subject of several recent research reports. UBS Group boosted their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $139.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $118.00 to $117.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $125.00 target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $126.00 to $125.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $126.87.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Allison G. Niderno sold 1,086 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.42, for a total transaction of $129,690.12. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 622 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $74,279.24. The trade was a 63.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 13,138 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.20, for a total transaction of $1,539,773.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,678 shares in the company, valued at $3,712,661.60. This represents a 29.32 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 113,429 shares of company stock valued at $13,618,028. Insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:HIG opened at $127.50 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $36.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.32, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.70. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $98.16 and a 12 month high of $129.55. The company has a current ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $119.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $115.80.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The insurance provider reported $2.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $6.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.97 billion. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a return on equity of 19.55% and a net margin of 11.72%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.34 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.63%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio is 20.74%.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Company Profile

The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides insurance and financial services to individual and business customers in the United States, the United Kingdom, and internationally. Its Commercial Lines segment offers insurance coverages, including workers' compensation, property, automobile, general and professional liability, package business, umbrella, fidelity and surety, marine, livestock, accident, health, and reinsurance through regional offices, branches, sales and policyholder service centers, independent retail agents and brokers, wholesale agents, and reinsurance brokers.