The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) Position Increased by State of Wyoming

State of Wyoming raised its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG - Free Report) by 82.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,943 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 2,691 shares during the quarter. State of Wyoming's holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $650,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Horizon Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter worth $277,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,701,675 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $514,363,000 after purchasing an additional 202,487 shares during the period. Suncoast Equity Management purchased a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at $311,000. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 62.1% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 28,622 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $3,131,000 after purchasing an additional 10,964 shares during the period. Finally, M&T Bank Corp grew its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 13.9% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 46,868 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $5,127,000 after purchasing an additional 5,702 shares during the period. 93.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $115.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Raymond James lifted 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 report on Monday, March 31st. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a $125.00 price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Wall Street Zen raised The Hartford Financial Services Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $125.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, The Hartford Financial Services Group presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $129.71.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Allison G. Niderno sold 1,086 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.42, for a total value of $129,690.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 622 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $74,279.24. This represents a 63.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 13,138 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.20, for a total value of $1,539,773.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,678 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,712,661.60. This represents a 29.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 113,429 shares of company stock worth $13,618,028. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of HIG stock traded down $0.19 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $128.86. The company had a trading volume of 1,472,551 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,571,222. 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, Inc. has a twelve month low of $98.16 and a twelve month high of $132.09. The company has a market capitalization of $36.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.70. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $121.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $116.90.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.97 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.34 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side 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 business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.61%. The Hartford Financial Services Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.74%.

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.