Vanguard Group Inc. Raises Stock Position in The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. $HIG

Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 0.4% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 37,160,644 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 156,807 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 13.22% of The Hartford Insurance Group worth $4,714,571,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of HIG. Woodline Partners LP raised its position in The Hartford Insurance Group by 28,218.5% in the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 757,804 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $93,763,000 after purchasing an additional 755,128 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group during the first quarter worth approximately $87,516,000. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. increased its holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group by 47.0% during the 1st quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 2,141,537 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $264,972,000 after purchasing an additional 684,390 shares during the period. Amundi lifted its holdings in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 27.4% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 1,943,498 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $239,905,000 after buying an additional 417,951 shares during the period. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 38.4% during the 2nd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 1,493,077 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $189,427,000 after buying an additional 414,216 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at The Hartford Insurance Group

In other news, EVP Lori A. Rodden sold 7,841 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $122.41, for a total value of $959,816.81. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 18,400 shares in the company, valued at $2,252,344. This represents a 29.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Donald Christian Hunt sold 2,124 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.87, for a total value of $284,339.88. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

The Hartford Insurance Group Price Performance

Shares of HIG opened at $132.20 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.84 billion, a PE ratio of 10.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.31. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $129.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $128.19. The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $104.93 and a 1-year high of $135.27.

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 27th. The insurance provider reported $3.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.76. The Hartford Insurance Group had a return on equity of 21.07% and a net margin of 12.75%.The business had revenue of $1.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.17 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.53 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. will post 11.11 EPS for the current year.

The Hartford Insurance Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st will be issued a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 1st. This is a positive change from The Hartford Insurance Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. The Hartford Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.61%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on HIG. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on The Hartford Insurance Group in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $152.00 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 1st. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Finally, Citigroup started coverage on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $138.00 target price for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.86.

The Hartford Insurance 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.