The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) Stake Cut by Gulf International Bank UK Ltd

Gulf International Bank UK Ltd cut its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 24,230 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 288 shares during the period. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $2,650,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HIG. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd lifted its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 265.5% in the fourth quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 1,213,074 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $132,710,000 after buying an additional 881,224 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 437.9% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 871,318 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $95,322,000 after buying an additional 709,324 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 17.3% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,938,421 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $430,272,000 after buying an additional 581,103 shares during the last quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec lifted its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 42.1% in the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 935,298 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $110,000,000 after buying an additional 277,295 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 43.8% in the fourth quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 809,411 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $88,550,000 after buying an additional 246,528 shares during the last quarter. 93.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HIG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $139.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $130.00 to $126.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays raised The Hartford Financial Services Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $130.00 to $135.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com lowered The Hartford Financial Services Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $127.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.94.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Price Performance

NYSE:HIG opened at $118.44 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $111.72 and its 200 day moving average price is $114.43. The firm has a market cap of $33.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.44, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.97. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $94.32 and a 52-week high of $124.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.26. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a return on equity of 19.55% and a net margin of 11.72%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.76%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.10%.

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.