Davis Investment Partners LLC Invests $200,000 in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Davis Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 1,700 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $200,000.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. DT Investment Partners LLC lifted its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 49.8% during the fourth quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 331 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Key Financial Inc increased its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 526.3% during the fourth quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 357 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other The Hartford Financial Services Group news, SVP Allison G. Niderno sold 1,086 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.42, for a total transaction of $129,690.12. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 622 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $74,279.24. This represents a 63.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Christopher Swift sold 98,061 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.39, for a total value of $11,805,563.79. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 211,082 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,412,161.98. This trade represents a 31.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 100,291 shares of company stock worth $12,078,254. 1.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Performance

Shares of HIG stock opened at $124.30 on Thursday. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $98.16 and a fifty-two week high of $132.09. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $123.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $117.87. 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 firm has a market cap of $35.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.01, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.71.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The insurance provider reported $2.20 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $6.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.97 billion. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a return on equity of 19.55% and a net margin of 11.72%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.34 earnings per share. Analysts predict that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.67%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.74%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $115.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $125.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Raymond James raised their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $129.71.

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.