Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board Trims Stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board reduced its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 21.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 34,551 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 9,440 shares during the period. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $2,777,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GoalVest Advisory LLC raised its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 464.8% during the fourth quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 305 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 251 shares in the last quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. CVA Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, First United Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 93.42% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $92.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $77.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $117.00 to $111.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $91.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $105.88.

Insider Activity at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In other The Hartford Financial Services Group news, CFO Beth Ann Costello sold 38,915 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.42, for a total transaction of $3,713,269.30. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 69,169 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,600,105.98. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other The Hartford Financial Services Group news, CFO Beth Ann Costello sold 38,915 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.42, for a total transaction of $3,713,269.30. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 69,169 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,600,105.98. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael R. Fisher sold 27,004 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.90, for a total value of $2,670,695.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 18,906 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,869,803.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 166,052 shares of company stock valued at $16,346,296 in the last three months. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HIG traded down $0.78 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $101.60. The stock had a trading volume of 346,744 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,750,820. The firm has a market cap of $30.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.55, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $67.42 and a fifty-two week high of $103.64. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $100.02 and a 200-day moving average of $89.89.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The insurance provider reported $2.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.43 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $6.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.51 billion. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 10.87% and a return on equity of 20.64%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.68 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 9.94 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, June 3rd will be given a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 31st. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.85%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.36%.

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.