The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG) Cut to Equal Weight at Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG) from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating in a report released on Wednesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has $139.00 price target on the insurance provider’s stock, down from their prior price target of $158.00.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Truist Financial started coverage on The Hartford Insurance Group in a research note on Monday, October 12th. They set a “hold” rating and a $137.00 price objective for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on The Hartford Insurance Group from $144.00 to $137.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on The Hartford Insurance Group from $145.00 to $135.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $154.00 to $144.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their price target on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $145.00 to $136.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and thirteen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $143.56.

The Hartford Insurance Group Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of The Hartford Insurance Group stock opened at $137.45 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $132.61 and a 200-day moving average of $135.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.28 and a quick ratio of 0.28. The company has a market capitalization of $36.76 billion, a PE ratio of 9.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.48. The Hartford Insurance Group has a 1-year low of $120.42 and a 1-year high of $146.07.

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 26th. The insurance provider reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.17 by $0.33. The business had revenue of $7.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.37 billion. The Hartford Insurance Group had a return on equity of 20.93% and a net margin of 15.85%. The company’s revenue was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.78 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that The Hartford Insurance Group will post 13.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Insurance Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 5th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be paid a $0.67 dividend. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. This is a positive change from The Hartford Insurance Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 1st. The Hartford Insurance Group’s payout ratio is 14.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Beth Costello sold 31,597 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.75, for a total value 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 $11,265,621. The trade was a 27.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of HIG. XXI Wealth LLC grew its holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. XXI Wealth LLC now owns 3,212 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $393,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Abacus Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in The Hartford Insurance Group by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Abacus Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,846 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $715,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc raised its stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 2.3% in the third quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 3,619 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $478,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 5.4% in the third quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,649 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $202,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Choreo LLC raised its stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 1.7% in the third quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 4,998 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $615,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

About The Hartford Insurance Group

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.