The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. $HIG Stake Lifted by Wealthfront Advisers LLC

Key Points

• Wealthfront Advisers increased its stake in The Hartford Insurance Group by 21.3% in the first quarter, ending with 52,247 shares valued at about $7.1 million.
• CEO-level insider activity included President Adin M. Tooker selling 8,895 shares in late May for roughly $1.2 million under a pre-arranged trading plan.
• Analysts are mixed on HIG: the stock has a Hold consensus rating with an average target price of $148.38, while the shares recently traded up 2.6% at $140.26 after the company reported quarterly EPS and revenue that both missed estimates.

Wealthfront Advisers LLC lifted its stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG - Free Report) by 21.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 52,247 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 9,168 shares during the quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC's holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group were worth $7,065,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HIG. First Pacific Financial bought a new position in The Hartford Insurance Group during the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group in the third quarter valued at $29,000. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 144.8% in the fourth quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 257 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the period. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its stake in The Hartford Insurance Group by 45.3% during the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 279 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.42% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other The Hartford Insurance Group news, President Adin M. Tooker sold 8,895 shares of the company's 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 transaction, the president owned 38,208 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,163,047.04. This represents a 18.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Piper Sandler reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $146.00 price target (down from $148.00) on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group in a research report on Wednesday. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $157.00 to $155.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $154.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $154.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $142.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $148.38.

The Hartford Insurance Group Trading Up 2.6%

NYSE:HIG opened at $140.26 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $133.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $135.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.81 and a beta of 0.47. The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $120.33 and a 1-year high of $144.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24.

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The insurance provider reported $3.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.39 by ($0.30). The Hartford Insurance Group had a net margin of 14.10% and a return on equity of 22.52%. The firm had revenue of $7.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.41 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.20 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. will post 12.74 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hartford Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 1st. The Hartford Insurance Group's payout ratio is 16.87%.

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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