The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. $HIG Stock: Ethic Inc. Boosts Holdings

Key Points

• Ethic Inc. increased its HIG stake by 24.4% in the third quarter, adding 13,072 shares to hold 66,666 shares valued at about $8.16 million. Institutional investors own 93.42% of the stock.
• Hartford reported quarterly EPS of $3.50, beating the $3.17 consensus, while revenue of $7.22 billion fell short of estimates but rose 3.9% year over year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend from $0.60 to $0.67 per share ($2.68 annualized; 2.0% yield). Analysts’ consensus rating is Hold, with an average price target of $144.69.

Ethic Inc. raised its stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG - Free Report) by 24.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 66,666 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 13,072 shares during the period. Ethic Inc.'s holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group were worth $8,157,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of HIG. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group in the second quarter valued at about $4,067,052,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 1.6% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,699,459 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $635,490,000 after acquiring an additional 72,448 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 2.1% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 3,831,622 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $518,150,000 after acquiring an additional 79,827 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 5.8% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,461,607 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $468,113,000 after acquiring an additional 189,916 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group in the second quarter worth approximately $346,877,000. 93.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Piper Sandler cut The Hartford Insurance Group from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $148.00 to $146.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $145.00 to $135.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $164.00 to $158.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (a-)" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $144.69.

The Hartford Insurance Group Stock Performance

HIG stock opened at $134.13 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $35.87 billion, a PE ratio of 8.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a current ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $132.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $135.49. The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $120.42 and a 1-year high of $146.07.

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, October 26th. The insurance provider reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.17 by $0.33. The Hartford Insurance Group had a return on equity of 20.93% and a net margin of 15.85%. The company had revenue of $7.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.78 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. will post 13.34 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hartford Insurance Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be paid a $0.67 dividend. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. This is a boost from The Hartford Insurance Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 1st. The Hartford Insurance Group's payout ratio is presently 14.53%.

Insider Transactions at The Hartford Insurance Group

In other The Hartford Insurance Group news, CFO Beth Costello sold 31,597 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.75, for a total value of $4,289,292.75. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 82,988 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,265,621. The trade was a 27.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

The Hartford Insurance Group Company Profile

The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc, known as The Hartford, is a U.S.-based insurance company founded in 1810 and headquartered in Hartford, Connecticut. It provides property and casualty insurance and employee benefits to businesses, organizations and individuals.

Its commercial insurance offerings include coverage such as workers' compensation, general liability, commercial auto and property insurance. The company also provides group benefits, including life, disability and leave-management products, along with personal auto and homeowners insurance, which it offers through arrangements including its relationship with AARP.

The Hartford serves customers primarily in the United States, with select international operations.

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