Abacus Wealth Partners LLC Makes New $1.97 Million Investment in The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. $HIG

Key Points

• Abacus Wealth Partners initiated a new position in The Hartford Insurance Group, buying 14,305 shares valued at about $1.97 million in the fourth quarter.
• Institutional ownership in HIG remains heavy, with hedge funds and other institutions holding 93.42% of the stock; several large investors also expanded their positions during the period.
• The Hartford reported quarterly EPS of $3.09, missing estimates, though revenue rose 6.1% year over year; the company also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.60 per share, yielding about 1.8%.

Abacus Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 14,305 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,971,000.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 286,241.4% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 73,861,771 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $10,178,152,000 after buying an additional 73,835,976 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 0.4% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,031,840 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $2,146,749,000 after purchasing an additional 55,983 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 10.3% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,331,293 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $711,141,000 after purchasing an additional 496,821 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 4,389,329 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $606,956,000 after purchasing an additional 81,712 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 3.3% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,376,931 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $450,449,000 after purchasing an additional 108,765 shares in the last quarter. 93.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Roth Mkm lifted their price target on The Hartford Insurance Group from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on The Hartford Insurance Group from $140.00 to $142.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Mizuho lifted their price target on The Hartford Insurance Group from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Barclays dropped their target price on The Hartford Insurance Group from $159.00 to $156.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their target price on The Hartford Insurance Group from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $149.31.

The Hartford Insurance Group Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:HIG opened at $134.02 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $36.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.42, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.31. The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $119.61 and a 1 year high of $144.50. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $135.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $135.41.

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The insurance provider reported $3.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.39 by ($0.30). The business had revenue of $14.45 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.41 billion. The Hartford Insurance Group had a net margin of 14.10% and a return on equity of 22.52%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.20 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. will post 13.17 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hartford Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, March 2nd were given a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. The Hartford Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio is 16.87%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Lori A. Rodden sold 40,693 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.05, for a total transaction of $5,617,668.65. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 25,392 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,505,365.60. This represents a 61.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

The Hartford Insurance Group Profile

The Hartford Financial Services Group, commonly known as The Hartford, is a U.S.-based insurance and investment company that provides a broad range of commercial and personal insurance products and employee benefits. Its core businesses include property and casualty insurance for businesses and individuals, group benefits such as group life, disability and dental plans, and retirement and investment solutions offered through affiliated asset-management operations. The company also delivers risk management, claims-handling and loss-prevention services designed to support policyholders across a variety of industries.

Founded in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1810, The Hartford is one of the oldest insurance organizations in the United States and has a long history of underwriting and product development across multiple insurance lines.

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