Sterling Capital Management LLC Buys 24,023 Shares of The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. $HIG

Key Points

• Sterling Capital Management boosted its stake in The Hartford Insurance Group by 133.9% in the first quarter, buying 24,023 additional shares and bringing its total holding to 41,969 shares worth about $5.68 million.
• Institutional ownership in HIG remains very high at 93.42%, and several other large investors also added to or maintained major positions in the insurer.
• The company reported mixed quarterly results, with earnings per share of $3.09 missing expectations and revenue of $7.23 billion also slightly below estimates, while it continues to pay a quarterly dividend of $0.60 per share.

Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG - Free Report) by 133.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 41,969 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 24,023 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC's holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group were worth $5,675,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 286,241.4% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 73,861,771 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $10,178,152,000 after purchasing an additional 73,835,976 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in The Hartford Insurance Group by 0.4% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,031,840 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $2,146,749,000 after buying an additional 55,983 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in The Hartford Insurance Group by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,948,948 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,091,440,000 after buying an additional 34,274 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 10.3% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,331,293 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $711,141,000 after buying an additional 496,821 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $611,724,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.42% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on HIG shares. Bank of America boosted their target price on The Hartford Insurance Group from $136.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut their price objective on The Hartford Insurance Group from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on The Hartford Insurance Group from $149.00 to $142.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on The Hartford Insurance Group from $165.00 to $154.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on The Hartford Insurance Group from $156.00 to $155.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $147.31.

Insider Buying and Selling at The Hartford Insurance Group

In other news, President Adin M. Tooker sold 8,895 shares of The Hartford Insurance Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.13, for a total value of $1,201,981.35. Following the sale, the president directly owned 38,208 shares in the company, valued at $5,163,047.04. This trade represents a 18.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

The Hartford Insurance Group Stock Performance

HIG opened at $133.99 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $36.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.47. The business's 50-day moving average price is $132.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $135.35. The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $119.61 and a 1 year high of $144.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.31.

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The insurance provider reported $3.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.39 by ($0.30). The firm had revenue of $7.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.41 billion. The Hartford Insurance Group had a return on equity of 22.52% and a net margin of 14.10%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.20 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. will post 12.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. The Hartford Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.87%.

About The Hartford Insurance Group

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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