Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Acquires 40,400 Shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. raised its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,229,133 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 40,400 shares during the period. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. owned 0.42% of The Hartford Financial Services Group worth $123,577,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in HIG. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. bought a new position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Quest Partners LLC raised its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 2,750.0% in the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 285 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 275 shares during the period. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. raised its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 189.9% in the fourth quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 374 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares during the period. Bank & Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the second quarter worth $30,000. Finally, First United Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HIG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Barclays started coverage on The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $130.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup downgraded The Hartford Financial Services Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $116.00 to $114.00 in a research note on Friday, June 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $104.00 to $116.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $120.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, The Hartford Financial Services Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $111.94.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of HIG stock opened at $116.84 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $108.08 and a 200-day moving average of $102.79. The stock has a market cap of $34.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.28, a P/E/G ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.93. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $68.82 and a 52-week high of $117.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.32.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The insurance provider reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $6.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.02 billion. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 11.44% and a return on equity of 21.20%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.88 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 10.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.47 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.61%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.36%.

The Hartford Financial Services Group announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, July 25th that permits the company to buyback $3.30 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the insurance provider to reacquire up to 10.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In other The Hartford Financial Services Group news, EVP Michael R. Fisher sold 4,088 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.47, for a total transaction of $414,809.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,818 shares in the company, valued at $1,503,582.46. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

The Hartford Financial Services Group 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.