The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) Shares Sold by MCF Advisors LLC

MCF Advisors LLC lowered its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 10.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,862 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 345 shares during the quarter. MCF Advisors LLC’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $289,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HIG. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the second quarter valued at about $213,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 27.1% in the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 456,799 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $47,073,000 after buying an additional 97,465 shares in the last quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise boosted its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 378.8% in the 1st quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 16,725 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,724,000 after buying an additional 13,232 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 5.6% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 229,305 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $23,629,000 after buying an additional 12,067 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp raised its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 14.2% during the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 261,995 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $21,059,000 after acquiring an additional 32,534 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other The Hartford Financial Services Group news, EVP Michael R. Fisher sold 4,088 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.47, for a total value of $414,809.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,818 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,503,582.46. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HIG has been the subject of several recent research reports. Citigroup downgraded The Hartford Financial Services Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $116.00 to $114.00 in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Argus upgraded shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 13th. Barclays initiated coverage on The Hartford Financial Services Group in a report on Wednesday. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $130.00 price target for the company. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $112.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $111.94.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Trading Down 0.8 %

HIG opened at $115.08 on Friday. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $68.82 and a 52 week high of $117.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $107.12 and a 200-day simple moving average of $102.21. The firm has a market cap of $34.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.08, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.92.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The insurance provider reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $6.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.02 billion. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a return on equity of 21.20% and a net margin of 11.44%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.88 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 10.09 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, July 25th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.30 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the insurance provider to buy up to 10.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be issued a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 3rd. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.36%.

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.