The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) Holdings Lifted by Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH

Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH grew its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 91.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,518 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 6,440 shares during the period. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $1,479,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,251,389 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $792,796,000 after acquiring an additional 81,495 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,701,675 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $514,363,000 after purchasing an additional 202,487 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter worth about $416,340,000. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 17.2% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,537,665 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $387,021,000 after purchasing an additional 519,717 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,448,982 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $377,319,000 after buying an additional 25,053 shares in the last quarter. 93.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on HIG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $125.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Barclays increased their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. StockNews.com cut The Hartford Financial Services Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $126.00 to $125.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $125.00 target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, The Hartford Financial Services Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $128.07.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Trading Up 1.4%

The Hartford Financial Services Group stock opened at $131.09 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $120.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $116.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.32. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $98.16 and a 52 week high of $131.26.

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

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.74%.

Insider Activity at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In related news, SVP Allison G. Niderno sold 1,086 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group 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 approximately $74,279.24. This trade represents a 63.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Christopher Swift sold 98,061 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.39, for a total value of $11,805,563.79. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 211,082 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,412,161.98. The trade was a 31.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 113,429 shares of company stock valued at $13,618,028. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

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.