The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) Shares Sold by Unigestion Holding SA

Unigestion Holding SA cut its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 5.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 206,211 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 11,955 shares during the period. Unigestion Holding SA owned approximately 0.07% of The Hartford Financial Services Group worth $22,559,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 3,342.9% in the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 241 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares during the last quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. increased its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 46.5% during the fourth quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 293 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 49.8% during the fourth quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 331 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in The Hartford Financial Services Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Key Financial Inc increased its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 526.3% during the 4th quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 357 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on HIG shares. Raymond James upped their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 31st. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $125.00 price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Barclays raised shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $130.00 to $135.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of 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. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $123.47.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Down 8.0 %

The Hartford Financial Services Group stock opened at $113.56 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.68. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $116.56 and its 200-day simple moving average is $115.48. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $94.47 and a twelve month high of $125.08. 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 (NYSE:HIG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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, equities analysts expect that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.83%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In related news, CEO Christopher Swift sold 1,144 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.00, for a total value of $143,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 211,082 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,385,250. This represents a 0.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 13,138 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.20, for a total value of $1,539,773.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,678 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,712,661.60. This trade represents a 29.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 112,343 shares of company stock valued at $13,488,337. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

About The Hartford Financial Services Group

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.