Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Reduces Stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. lowered its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 0.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 215,609 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 878 shares during the period. Royal London Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $23,588,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd lifted its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 265.5% in the fourth quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 1,213,074 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $132,710,000 after acquiring an additional 881,224 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 437.9% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 871,318 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $95,322,000 after acquiring an additional 709,324 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 11,904.7% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 631,565 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $632,000 after acquiring an additional 626,304 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $65,256,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 17.3% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,938,421 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $430,272,000 after acquiring an additional 581,103 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on HIG. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $130.00 to $126.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price 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 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. Piper Sandler upped their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $127.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $139.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, The Hartford Financial Services Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $122.94.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:HIG 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 business has a fifty day moving average of $114.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $115.05. The stock has a market cap of $34.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.52, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.91. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $94.47 and a 52-week high of $124.90.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, research analysts expect that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In other news, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 13,138 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,678 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,712,661.60. This represents a 29.32 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christopher Swift sold 98,061 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 211,082 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,412,161.98. This represents a 31.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.