The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) Shares Bought by Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 2.1% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,913,914 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 39,585 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $209,382,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 47.4% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 12,836 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,404,000 after buying an additional 4,127 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 40.4% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 4,378 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $479,000 after acquiring an additional 1,259 shares during the period. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 718.9% in the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 2,604 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $285,000 after purchasing an additional 2,286 shares in the last quarter. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in The Hartford Financial Services Group in the 4th quarter worth about $58,000. Finally, Bailard Inc. boosted its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 11.8% during the fourth quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 21,388 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,340,000 after purchasing an additional 2,261 shares in the last quarter. 93.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on HIG. Barclays upgraded The Hartford Financial Services Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $130.00 to $135.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $125.00 price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $127.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com lowered shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $130.00 to $126.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $122.94.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Performance

Shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock opened at $116.70 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $112.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $114.66. The company has a market cap of $33.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.28, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.32. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a one year low of $94.47 and a one year high of $124.90.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.94 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 predict that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 11.11 EPS for the current year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Announces Dividend

The company 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. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.78%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s payout ratio is 20.10%.

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.