Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC Cuts Holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. $HIG

Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC lowered its position in The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 14.8% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 136,560 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 23,643 shares during the quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC’s holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group were worth $17,325,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HIG. Private Wealth Management Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 151.1% in the 2nd quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 221 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC increased its position in The Hartford Insurance Group by 72.8% during the 2nd quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 235 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in The Hartford Insurance Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in The Hartford Insurance Group by 123.8% during the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 291 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Signature Resources Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in The Hartford Insurance Group during the second quarter worth approximately $38,000. 93.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $152.00 target price on the stock. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $140.00 price target (up from $135.00) on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group in a report on Friday, August 1st. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on The Hartford Insurance Group from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 17th. Wolfe Research started coverage on The Hartford Insurance Group in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (a-)” rating on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group in a research note on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, The Hartford Insurance Group currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $143.29.

The Hartford Insurance Group Stock Performance

Shares of HIG opened at $137.03 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $38.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.19, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The business’s 50 day moving average is $130.30 and its two-hundred day moving average is $128.64. The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $104.93 and a 52-week high of $138.64.

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

The Hartford Insurance Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st will be paid a $0.60 dividend. This is a boost from The Hartford Insurance Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 1st. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The Hartford Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.61%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Donald Christian Hunt sold 2,124 shares of The Hartford Insurance Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.87, for a total value of $284,339.88. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Lori A. Rodden sold 7,841 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.41, for a total value of $959,816.81. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 18,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,252,344. This represents a 29.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

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.