The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. $HIG Stock: Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Raises Position

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund grew its stake in The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 9.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 191,455 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 16,542 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund owned 0.07% of The Hartford Insurance Group worth $23,426,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of HIG. SEB Asset Management AB purchased a new stake in The Hartford Insurance Group in the first quarter valued at $69,310,000. National Pension Service grew its holdings in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 4.9% during the second quarter. National Pension Service now owns 554,720 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $73,511,000 after purchasing an additional 26,060 shares during the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group during the second quarter worth about $2,286,000. Engineers Gate Manager LP grew its holdings in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 262.4% during the second quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 61,198 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $8,110,000 after purchasing an additional 44,310 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 222.6% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 296,906 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $36,329,000 after purchasing an additional 204,857 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other The Hartford Insurance Group news, CFO Beth Costello sold 31,597 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.75, for a total transaction of $4,289,292.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 82,988 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,265,621. This trade represents a 27.58% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

The Hartford Insurance Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HIG opened at $137.81 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $132.67 and a 200-day simple moving average of $135.56. The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. has a one year low of $120.42 and a one year high of $146.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.34, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.48.

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG) last announced its earnings results on Monday, October 26th. The insurance provider reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.17 by $0.33. The Hartford Insurance Group had a net margin of 15.85% and a return on equity of 20.93%. The business had revenue of $7.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.78 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. will post 13.34 EPS for the current year.

The Hartford Insurance Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.67 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 1st. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. This is a boost from The Hartford Insurance Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The Hartford Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.53%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HIG has been the subject of several research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on The Hartford Insurance Group from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on The Hartford Insurance Group from $145.00 to $135.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Zacks Research raised The Hartford Insurance Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Piper Sandler lowered The Hartford Insurance Group from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $148.00 to $146.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on The Hartford Insurance Group from $144.00 to $137.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, The Hartford Insurance Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $144.69.

The Hartford Insurance Group Profile

The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc., known as The Hartford, is a U.S.-based insurance company founded in 1810 and headquartered in Hartford, Connecticut. It provides property and casualty insurance and employee benefits to businesses, organizations and individuals. Its commercial insurance offerings include coverage such as workers’ compensation, general liability, commercial auto and property insurance. The company also provides group benefits, including life, disability and leave-management products, along with personal auto and homeowners insurance, which it offers through arrangements including its relationship with AARP.