The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) Stake Decreased by EP Wealth Advisors LLC

EP Wealth Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 2.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,855 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 489 shares during the quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $1,844,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group during the fourth quarter valued at $416,340,000. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd increased its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 265.5% during the 4th quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 1,213,074 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $132,710,000 after buying an additional 881,224 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 48.1% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,264,397 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $247,761,000 after buying an additional 735,170 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 437.9% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 871,318 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $95,322,000 after acquiring an additional 709,324 shares during the period. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 11,904.7% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 631,565 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $632,000 after acquiring an additional 626,304 shares in the last quarter. 93.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Christopher Swift sold 98,061 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.39, for a total transaction of $11,805,563.79. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 211,082 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,412,161.98. This trade represents a 31.72 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Allison G. Niderno sold 1,086 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 28th. The stock was 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 owns 622 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $74,279.24. This represents a 63.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 113,429 shares of company stock worth $13,618,028. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HIG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Raymond James boosted their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 31st. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $125.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $125.00 price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $139.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Seven equities 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $126.87.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock opened at $127.50 on Friday. 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 Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $98.16 and a 1 year high of $129.55. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $119.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $115.80. The company has a market cap of $36.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.70.

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

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

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