Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Increases Position in The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. $HIG

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management boosted its stake in The Hartford Insurance Group by 154.4% in the first quarter, bringing its holdings to 280,884 shares worth about $38 million.
• Several other institutional investors also increased or initiated positions, and institutions and hedge funds now own 93.42% of the stock.
• The Hartford reported Q1 earnings of $3.09 per share, missing estimates, while analysts remain cautiously positive with a Moderate Buy consensus and a $147.31 price target; the company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.60 per share.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG - Free Report) by 154.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 280,884 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 170,452 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned approximately 0.10% of The Hartford Insurance Group worth $37,984,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in The Hartford Insurance Group in the 1st quarter worth about $207,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 56,140 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $7,122,000 after purchasing an additional 886 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina lifted its stake in The Hartford Insurance Group by 3.9% during the second quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 167,868 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $21,297,000 after purchasing an additional 6,285 shares in the last quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 9.8% in the second quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC now owns 6,919 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $878,000 after purchasing an additional 619 shares during the period. Finally, DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main boosted its holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group by 25.5% in the second quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 193,020 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $24,488,000 after purchasing an additional 39,220 shares during the period. 93.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other The Hartford Insurance Group news, President Adin M. Tooker sold 8,895 shares of The Hartford Insurance Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.13, for a total transaction of $1,201,981.35. Following the transaction, the president directly owned 38,208 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,163,047.04. The trade was a 18.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group lowered their price objective on The Hartford Insurance Group from $157.00 to $155.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Bank of America increased their price objective on The Hartford Insurance Group from $136.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $156.00 to $155.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $149.00 to $142.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $159.00 to $154.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 5th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $147.31.

The Hartford Insurance Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HIG opened at $133.99 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $132.87 and a 200-day simple moving average of $135.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The company has a market cap of $36.73 billion, a PE ratio of 9.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.47. The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $119.61 and a 12-month high of $144.50.

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The insurance provider reported $3.09 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.39 by ($0.30). The Hartford Insurance Group had a net margin of 14.10% and a return on equity of 22.52%. The company had revenue of $7.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.41 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.20 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. will post 12.9 EPS for the current year.

The Hartford Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st will be paid a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The Hartford Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.87%.

The Hartford Insurance Group Company 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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