Tredje AP fonden Cuts Holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Tredje AP fonden lowered its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 59.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 47,680 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 70,377 shares during the quarter. Tredje AP fonden’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $4,794,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in HIG. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC increased its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 26.2% in the fourth quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 6,119,863 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $491,915,000 after acquiring an additional 1,272,290 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,809,358 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $584,177,000 after purchasing an additional 69,007 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $278,704,000. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,381,943 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $271,841,000 after buying an additional 18,419 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 7.9% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,191,914 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $328,320,000 after buying an additional 233,742 shares in the last quarter. 93.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Michael R. Fisher sold 4,088 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.47, for a total transaction of $414,809.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,818 shares in the company, valued at $1,503,582.46. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup lowered shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $116.00 to $114.00 in a report on Friday, June 28th. Barclays began coverage on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $130.00 price target for the company. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $112.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $122.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, The Hartford Financial Services Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $113.22.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:HIG opened at $116.70 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.26, a P/E/G ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.32. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $110.04 and a 200-day moving average price of $103.60. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $68.82 and a 52-week high of $117.84.

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

The Hartford Financial Services Group announced that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, July 25th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.30 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the insurance provider to repurchase up to 10.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s management 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 paid a dividend of $0.47 per share. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 3rd. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s payout ratio is currently 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.