Comerica Bank Sells 4,774 Shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Comerica Bank trimmed its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG - Free Report) by 5.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 85,287 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 4,774 shares during the quarter. Comerica Bank's holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $9,330,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 3,342.9% during the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 241 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares during the period. Barrett & Company Inc. raised its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 46.5% during the 4th quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 293 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC increased its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 49.8% in the 4th quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 331 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the period. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Key Financial Inc grew its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 526.3% during the fourth quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 357 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.42% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Allison G. Niderno sold 1,086 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.42, for a total transaction of $129,690.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 622 shares of the company's stock, valued at $74,279.24. This represents a 63.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 13,138 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.20, for a total transaction of $1,539,773.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 31,678 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,712,661.60. This represents a 29.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 113,429 shares of company stock worth $13,618,028. Insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Down 0.4 %

HIG traded down $0.48 during trading on Friday, hitting $127.73. The company had a trading volume of 433,907 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,569,244. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $119.33 and its 200 day moving average price is $115.75. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a one year low of $98.16 and a one year high of $129.55. The company has a market capitalization of $36.29 billion, a PE ratio of 12.34, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.70. 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 - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The insurance provider reported $2.20 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $6.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.97 billion. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 11.72% and a return on equity of 19.55%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.34 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. The Hartford Financial Services Group's payout ratio is presently 20.74%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on HIG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $125.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. UBS Group increased their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $139.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Barclays boosted their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Raymond James lifted their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $118.00 to $117.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $126.87.

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.