ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. Buys Shares of 68,204 The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Key Points

• ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. acquired 68,204 shares of The Hartford Insurance Group, valued at approximately $8.4 million, during the first quarter.
• The Hartford's stock has seen significant support from institutional investors, with 93.42% of its shares currently owned by them.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.52 per share, representing a 1.6% dividend yield, with the dividend payout ratio at 18.86%.

ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. bought a new position in The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 68,204 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $8,439,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of HIG. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 14,049.5% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,424,009 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,761,930,000 after acquiring an additional 1,413,945 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 48.1% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,264,397 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $247,761,000 after acquiring an additional 735,170 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 17.2% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,537,665 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $387,021,000 after acquiring an additional 519,717 shares during the period. Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $46,271,000. Finally, AustralianSuper Pty Ltd lifted its stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 31.9% in the 1st quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 1,600,215 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $197,995,000 after acquiring an additional 387,141 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.42% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on HIG. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $138.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $118.00 to $117.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $140.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, The Hartford Insurance Group presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $136.42.

The Hartford Insurance Group Price Performance

HIG stock traded up $0.99 on Friday, hitting $128.20. 954,415 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,635,000. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $124.83 and a 200-day moving average of $121.15. The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $104.93 and a 1-year high of $132.09. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The stock has a market cap of $36.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 0.67.

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The insurance provider reported $3.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.83 by $0.58. The company had revenue of $6.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.02 billion. The Hartford Insurance Group had a return on equity of 19.60% and a net margin of 11.83%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.50 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. will post 11.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 2nd. The Hartford Insurance Group's payout ratio is 18.86%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Beth Ann Costello sold 35,340 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.50, for a total value of $4,364,490.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 77,574 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,580,389. This represents a 31.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

The Hartford Insurance 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.