Nomura Holdings Inc. Buys Shares of 9,546 The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Nomura Holdings Inc. bought a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 9,546 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,044,000.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 3,342.9% in the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 241 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. increased its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 46.5% during the 4th quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 293 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. DT Investment Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 49.8% during the 4th quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 331 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. 93.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In other The Hartford Financial Services Group news, CEO Christopher Swift sold 1,144 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.00, for a total value of $143,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 211,082 shares in the company, valued at $26,385,250. The trade was a 0.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Allison G. Niderno sold 1,086 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.42, for a total transaction of $129,690.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 622 shares in the company, valued at $74,279.24. This represents a 63.58% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 113,429 shares of company stock worth $13,618,028. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Performance

NYSE:HIG opened at $131.09 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.67, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.70. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $120.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $116.32. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $98.16 and a twelve month high of $132.49.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The insurance provider reported $2.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $6.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.97 billion. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 11.72% and a return on equity of 19.55%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.34 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect 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 firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.59%. The Hartford Financial Services Group's payout ratio is 20.74%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $126.00 to $125.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $139.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $140.00 to $133.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $125.00 price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $128.07.

The Hartford Financial Services Group 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.

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