Korea Investment CORP Acquires 198,856 Shares of The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. $HIG

Key Points

• Korea Investment CORP raised its stake in The Hartford by 63.2%, buying 198,856 shares to own 513,441 shares (≈0.18%) valued at about $68.49 million at quarter end.
• CEO Christopher Swift sold 201,938 shares (~$27.55 million) and insiders sold 343,928 shares total last quarter, cutting insider ownership to 1.60%.
• The Hartford beat quarterly expectations with $4.06 EPS, declared a quarterly dividend of $0.60 per share (1.7% yield), and trades at a P/E of 10.44 with an average analyst price target of $148.13.

Korea Investment CORP increased its stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG - Free Report) by 63.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 513,441 shares of the insurance provider's stock after buying an additional 198,856 shares during the quarter. Korea Investment CORP owned about 0.18% of The Hartford Insurance Group worth $68,488,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich acquired a new stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group during the 3rd quarter worth $2,618,000. Angeles Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 10.7% in the third quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,027 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $270,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL raised its stake in The Hartford Insurance Group by 13.5% in the third quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 9,769 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,303,000 after purchasing an additional 1,159 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in The Hartford Insurance Group by 16.7% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,162,437 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $421,837,000 after purchasing an additional 452,274 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ramirez Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in The Hartford Insurance Group by 6.6% during the third quarter. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. now owns 22,540 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $3,007,000 after purchasing an additional 1,400 shares during the period. 93.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

The Hartford Insurance Group Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of HIG opened at $139.32 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.31. The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $107.49 and a 52 week high of $144.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.44, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.60. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $137.25 and a 200-day moving average of $133.80.

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $4.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.84. The Hartford Insurance Group had a return on equity of 21.92% and a net margin of 13.52%.The business had revenue of $7.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.29 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.94 EPS. The Hartford Insurance Group's quarterly revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. The Hartford Insurance Group's payout ratio is 17.99%.

Insider Activity

In other The Hartford Insurance Group news, CEO Christopher Swift sold 201,938 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.41, for a total transaction of $27,546,362.58. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 194,817 shares of the company's stock, valued at $26,574,986.97. The trade was a 50.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Lori A. Rodden sold 5,681 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.83, for a total transaction of $805,736.23. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 18,400 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,609,672. This trade represents a 23.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 343,928 shares of company stock valued at $47,393,256 over the last quarter. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HIG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Roth Mkm raised their target price on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $138.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Evercore lifted their price objective on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $137.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (a-)" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, The Hartford Insurance Group has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $148.13.

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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