Invesco Ltd. Reduces Holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Key Points

• Invesco Ltd. has reduced its stake in The Hartford Insurance Group by 18.1%, selling 1,037,194 shares, leaving them with 4,697,989 shares valued at $581.28 million as of their latest SEC filing.
• The Hartford Insurance Group announced a quarterly dividend of $0.52 per share, set to be paid on October 2nd, with an annualized yield of 1.6% and a payout ratio of 18.86%.
• Analysts have set an average price target of $136.42 for The Hartford Insurance Group, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" based on various recent upgrades by brokerages.

Invesco Ltd. trimmed its position in The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG - Free Report) by 18.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,697,989 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 1,037,194 shares during the quarter. Invesco Ltd. owned approximately 1.65% of The Hartford Insurance Group worth $581,282,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of HIG. FIL Ltd grew its position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 150.9% during the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 57,308 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $6,269,000 after buying an additional 34,471 shares during the period. Scotia Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $509,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its stake in The Hartford Insurance Group by 53.6% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 17,202 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,882,000 after acquiring an additional 6,003 shares during the period. Optimize Financial Inc bought a new stake in The Hartford Insurance Group in the 4th quarter valued at $307,000. Finally, Synovus Financial Corp grew its holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 10,552 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,154,000 after buying an additional 523 shares in the last quarter. 93.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at The Hartford Insurance Group

In related news, CFO Beth Ann Costello sold 35,340 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.50, for a total transaction of $4,364,490.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 77,574 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,580,389. This represents a 31.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on The Hartford Insurance Group from $138.00 to $139.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Wall Street Zen raised The Hartford Insurance Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on The Hartford Insurance Group from $140.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Barclays lowered their price objective on The Hartford Insurance Group from $145.00 to $142.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on The Hartford Insurance Group from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $137.64.

The Hartford Insurance Group Stock Down 0.1%

NYSE HIG traded down $0.20 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $131.15. The company's stock had a trading volume of 389,905 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,643,684. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $124.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $121.64. The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $104.93 and a twelve month 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 firm has a market capitalization of $36.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.88, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.67.

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The insurance provider reported $3.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.83 by $0.58. The Hartford Insurance Group had a net margin of 11.83% and a return on equity of 19.60%. The business had revenue of $6.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.50 EPS. The Hartford Insurance Group's revenue was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hartford Insurance Group Announces Dividend

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

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.