Vident Advisory LLC Decreases Holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. $HIG

Key Points

• Vident Advisory LLC reduced its holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group by 68.5%, selling nearly 25,000 shares and holding 11,470 shares worth approximately $1.42 million as of the latest quarter.
• The Hartford reported $3.41 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding expectations, with a notable revenue of $6.99 billion, reflecting a 7.7% year-over-year increase.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.52, scheduled for payment on October 2, representing an annualized dividend yield of 1.6% and a payout ratio of 18.86%.

Vident Advisory LLC cut its holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG - Free Report) by 68.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,470 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 24,889 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC's holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group were worth $1,419,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. State of Wyoming raised its stake in The Hartford Insurance Group by 31.7% in the first quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 7,828 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $969,000 after buying an additional 1,885 shares in the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC increased its position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 330.5% during the first quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 28,218 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $3,491,000 after purchasing an additional 21,664 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 68.5% during the first quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 3,948 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $483,000 after purchasing an additional 1,605 shares in the last quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. increased its position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 47.0% during the first quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 2,141,537 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $264,972,000 after purchasing an additional 684,390 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 78.6% during the first quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 35,352 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $4,374,000 after purchasing an additional 15,554 shares in the last quarter. 93.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other The Hartford Insurance Group news, CFO Beth Ann Costello sold 35,340 shares of The Hartford Insurance Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.50, for a total value of $4,364,490.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 77,574 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,580,389. The trade was a 31.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on HIG. Wall Street Zen cut The Hartford Insurance Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price 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. UBS Group lifted their target price on The Hartford Insurance Group from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on The Hartford Insurance Group from $138.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on The Hartford Insurance Group from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $138.00.

The Hartford Insurance Group Stock Performance

HIG stock traded down $3.05 during trading on Friday, hitting $131.65. The company had a trading volume of 1,975,142 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,215,685. The firm has a market cap of $37.02 billion, a PE ratio of 11.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.72. The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $104.93 and a 1-year high of $135.17. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $127.08 and a 200-day moving average price of $123.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG - Get Free Report) last issued 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 firm had revenue of $6.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.02 billion. The Hartford Insurance Group had a return on equity of 19.60% and a net margin of 11.83%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.50 EPS. On average, analysts expect that The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hartford Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be issued a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 2nd. The Hartford Insurance Group's payout ratio is currently 18.86%.

About The Hartford Insurance Group

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.