Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd Sells 1,354 Shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd cut its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 28.4% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 3,410 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 1,354 shares during the period. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $373,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in HIG. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd grew its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 265.5% during the 4th quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 1,213,074 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $132,710,000 after purchasing an additional 881,224 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 437.9% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 871,318 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $95,322,000 after purchasing an additional 709,324 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 11,904.7% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 631,565 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $632,000 after purchasing an additional 626,304 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $65,256,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 17.3% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,938,421 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $430,272,000 after purchasing an additional 581,103 shares during the last quarter. 93.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on HIG shares. Barclays raised shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $130.00 to $135.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $130.00 to $126.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $100.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $127.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $125.00 target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.94.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Down 0.4 %

The Hartford Financial Services Group stock opened at $119.20 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $94.47 and a 12-month high of $124.90. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $114.36 and its 200 day moving average is $115.05. The company has a market capitalization of $34.02 billion, a PE ratio of 11.52, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.91.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last released its 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 net margin of 11.72% and a return on equity of 19.55%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 11.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.74%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s payout ratio is 20.10%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other The Hartford Financial Services Group news, CEO Christopher Swift sold 98,061 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.39, for a total transaction of $11,805,563.79. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 211,082 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,412,161.98. This represents a 31.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 13,138 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.20, for a total transaction of $1,539,773.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 31,678 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,712,661.60. The trade was a 29.32 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.60% 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.