The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) Price Target Raised to $127.00

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) had its target price upped by Jefferies Financial Group from $113.00 to $127.00 in a research report report published on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a hold rating on the insurance provider’s stock.

HIG has been the subject of a number of other reports. Bank of America reaffirmed a neutral rating and issued a $121.00 price target (up from $113.00) on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Argus upgraded shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group to a strong-buy rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $112.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Citigroup downgraded shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from a buy rating to a neutral rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $116.00 to $114.00 in a report on Friday, June 28th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of 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. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $118.94.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:HIG opened at $117.36 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $113.93 and a 200-day moving average of $105.68. The firm has a market cap of $34.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.34, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.93. The Hartford Financial Services Group has a twelve month low of $68.92 and a twelve month high of $119.06. The company has a current ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The insurance provider reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.26. The company 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 business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.88 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that The Hartford Financial Services Group will post 10.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were paid a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.60%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.36%.

The Hartford Financial Services Group declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, July 25th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.30 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the insurance provider to buy up to 10.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Creative Planning increased its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 79,105 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $9,304,000 after buying an additional 2,237 shares during the period. Empirical Asset Management LLC grew its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 187.2% in the third quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC now owns 11,670 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,373,000 after acquiring an additional 7,607 shares in the last quarter. ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group in the third quarter worth approximately $89,000. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH grew its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 4.6% in the third quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH now owns 32,988 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,880,000 after acquiring an additional 1,439 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group in the third quarter worth approximately $967,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

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.