The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) Shares Acquired by Promethos Capital LLC

Promethos Capital LLC increased its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 118.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 40,929 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 22,170 shares during the period. The Hartford Financial Services Group comprises 1.5% of Promethos Capital LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest position. Promethos Capital LLC’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $4,115,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of HIG. Bailard Inc. increased its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 0.5% during the second quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 19,378 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,948,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the period. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC increased its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 3.1% during the 1st quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 3,736 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $385,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd raised its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 28.8% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 519 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 34.4% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 473 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the period. Finally, Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 2.8% during the first quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 4,543 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $468,000 after buying an additional 122 shares during the period. 93.42% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In other news, EVP Michael R. Fisher sold 4,088 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,818 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,503,582.46. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $130.00 price target for the company. 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. Citigroup downgraded The Hartford Financial Services Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $116.00 to $114.00 in a report on Friday, June 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $104.00 to $116.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Bank of America cut their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $113.00 to $111.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, The Hartford Financial Services Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $113.22.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Performance

Shares of HIG opened at $115.94 on Friday. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $68.82 and a 1 year high of $117.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.18, 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 company’s fifty day moving average is $110.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $103.68.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $6.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.02 billion. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 11.44% and a return on equity of 21.20%. The business’s revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.88 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 10.09 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, July 25th that permits the company to repurchase $3.30 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the insurance provider to buy up to 10.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be paid a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.62%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.36%.

About The Hartford Financial Services Group

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.