The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) Rating Lowered to “Hold” at StockNews.com

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) was downgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Tuesday.

HIG has been the subject of several other reports. Barclays upgraded shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $130.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on 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. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $130.00 to $126.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $100.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $139.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, The Hartford Financial Services Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.94.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE HIG opened at $119.73 on Tuesday. The Hartford Financial Services Group has a 1-year low of $94.47 and a 1-year high of $124.90. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $113.89 and a 200 day moving average price of $114.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.32.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.94 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.26. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 11.72% and a return on equity of 19.55%. Equities research analysts expect that The Hartford Financial Services Group will post 11.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Christopher Swift sold 98,061 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.39, for a total transaction of $11,805,563.79. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 211,082 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,412,161.98. This trade represents a 31.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 13,138 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.20, for a total value of $1,539,773.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 31,678 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,712,661.60. This represents a 29.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On The Hartford Financial Services Group

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of HIG. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,251,389 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $792,796,000 after buying an additional 81,495 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,701,675 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $514,363,000 after acquiring an additional 202,487 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 17.3% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,938,421 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $430,272,000 after acquiring an additional 581,103 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,830,462 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $419,053,000 after acquiring an additional 234,320 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $416,340,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

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.