CIBC Asset Management Inc Purchases 1,536 Shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 3.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 45,235 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,536 shares during the quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $4,949,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in HIG. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 17.3% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,938,421 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $430,272,000 after acquiring an additional 581,103 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 1,234,480 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $135,052,000 after acquiring an additional 34,938 shares during the last quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd grew its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 265.5% during the fourth quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 1,213,074 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $132,710,000 after acquiring an additional 881,224 shares during the last quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec grew its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 42.1% during the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 935,298 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $110,000,000 after acquiring an additional 277,295 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 437.9% during the fourth 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 last quarter. 93.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:HIG opened at $113.00 on Thursday. 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 market capitalization of $32.76 billion, a PE ratio of 10.92, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.97. The business has a 50 day moving average of $110.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $114.07. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $92.54 and a 12-month high of $124.90.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.26. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a return on equity of 19.55% and a net margin of 11.72%. As a group, 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 firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.84%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s payout ratio is 20.10%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on HIG shares. Barclays upgraded The Hartford Financial Services Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $130.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $100.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $125.00 price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $139.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded The Hartford Financial Services Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, The Hartford Financial Services Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $122.94.

The Hartford Financial Services Group 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.