Short Interest in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) Rises By 9.4%

The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,750,000 shares, a growth of 9.4% from the May 31st total of 4,340,000 shares. Approximately 1.6% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 1,580,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.0 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on HIG shares. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $120.00 price objective (up from $100.00) on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a report on Monday, April 1st. Citigroup downgraded The Hartford Financial Services Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $116.00 to $114.00 in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $117.00 to $111.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $96.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $106.71.

Insider Activity at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In other The Hartford Financial Services Group news, CFO Beth Ann Costello sold 72,076 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.71, for a total transaction of $7,186,697.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 69,169 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,896,840.99. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, EVP Michael R. Fisher sold 4,088 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,818 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,503,582.46. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Beth Ann Costello sold 72,076 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.71, for a total value of $7,186,697.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 69,169 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,896,840.99. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 94,499 shares of company stock valued at $9,449,309. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On The Hartford Financial Services Group

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. LPL Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 6.8% in the third quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 107,297 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $7,608,000 after acquiring an additional 6,840 shares during the last quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA increased its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 36.8% in the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 49,298 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,496,000 after buying an additional 13,271 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 40.4% in the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 22,049 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,563,000 after buying an additional 6,350 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,503,815 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $248,646,000 after buying an additional 87,001 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lido Advisors LLC bought a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $216,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Price Performance

Shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock opened at $99.60 on Thursday. The Hartford Financial Services Group has a twelve month low of $68.82 and a twelve month high of $105.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.31. The firm has a market cap of $29.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.93. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $100.65 and its 200-day simple moving average is $94.91.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The insurance provider reported $2.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.43 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $6.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.51 billion. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 10.87% and a return on equity of 20.64%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.68 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that The Hartford Financial Services Group will post 9.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 3rd were paid a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 3rd. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.89%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.36%.

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.