1832 Asset Management L.P. Acquires 10,886 Shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

1832 Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 36.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 40,363 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 10,886 shares during the quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P.’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $4,058,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC grew its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 26.2% during the 4th quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 6,119,863 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $491,915,000 after acquiring an additional 1,272,290 shares during the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. grew its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 72.0% in the first quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 1,335,594 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $137,633,000 after purchasing an additional 559,019 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB purchased a new position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the first quarter worth $53,980,000. KBC Group NV raised its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 85.5% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,074,470 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $86,366,000 after buying an additional 495,192 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 793.3% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 325,412 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,156,000 after buying an additional 288,984 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Price Performance

NYSE:HIG opened at $116.39 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The company has a market capitalization of $34.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.23, a P/E/G ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.93. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $68.82 and a 12 month high of $117.84. The business’s 50-day moving average is $111.18 and its 200 day moving average is $104.21.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The insurance provider reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $6.49 billion during 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.88 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 10.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Thursday, July 25th that allows the company to buyback $3.30 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the insurance provider to purchase up to 10.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.47 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.62%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.36%.

Insider Buying and Selling at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In other 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 transaction of $414,809.36. Following the completion of the sale, 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $122.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. Citigroup lowered 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $120.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $112.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Nine equities research 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $113.22.

The Hartford Financial Services Group 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.