Avanza Fonder AB Sells 4,734 Shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Avanza Fonder AB reduced its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG - Free Report) by 21.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 17,782 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 4,734 shares during the quarter. Avanza Fonder AB's holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $2,220,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. boosted its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 2,574 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $282,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 4,468 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $489,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 62.1% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 28,622 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $3,131,000 after buying an additional 10,964 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR grew its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 13.8% during the 4th quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 18,949 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $2,073,000 after buying an additional 2,291 shares during the period. Finally, Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC increased its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 96.2% in the 4th quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 4,243 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $464,000 after acquiring an additional 2,080 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.42% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on HIG shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $115.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. UBS Group increased their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $139.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Raymond James raised 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. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $129.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other The Hartford Financial Services Group news, SVP Allison G. Niderno sold 1,086 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.42, for a total transaction of $129,690.12. Following the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Christopher Swift sold 98,061 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.39, for a total transaction of $11,805,563.79. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 211,082 shares of the company's stock, valued at $25,412,161.98. The trade was a 31.72% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 100,291 shares of company stock valued at $12,078,254. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Performance

Shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock traded up $1.87 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $126.24. 1,124,464 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,583,172. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $98.16 and a 12 month high of $132.09. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $123.68 and a 200 day simple moving average of $117.87. The company has a market capitalization of $35.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.32.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The insurance provider reported $2.20 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.05. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a return on equity of 19.55% and a net margin of 11.72%. The business had revenue of $6.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.97 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.34 earnings per share. The Hartford Financial Services Group's quarterly revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. The Hartford Financial Services Group's dividend payout ratio is 20.74%.

The Hartford Financial Services 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.