The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. $HIG Stock: Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. Reduces Position

Key Points

• Lockheed Martin Investment Management cut its Hartford position by 32.4% in the third quarter, selling 24,680 shares and retaining 51,450 shares valued at about $6.3 million. Institutional investors collectively own 93.42% of the company.
• Hartford beat quarterly earnings expectations, reporting EPS of $3.50 versus $3.17 expected, though revenue of $7.22 billion came in below estimates. The company raised its quarterly dividend from $0.60 to $0.67 per share.
• Analysts’ consensus rating is Hold, with an average price target of $144.69; HIG opened at $134.88 in the article’s latest market update.

Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. lowered its holdings in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG - Free Report) by 32.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 51,450 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 24,680 shares during the period. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co.'s holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group were worth $6,295,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of HIG. M&G PLC grew its holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. M&G PLC now owns 157,967 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $19,272,000 after buying an additional 3,352 shares during the last quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 170.4% in the third quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC now owns 10,693 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,311,000 after acquiring an additional 6,739 shares during the last quarter. Leuthold Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 8.8% in the third quarter. Leuthold Group LLC now owns 38,160 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $4,669,000 after acquiring an additional 3,093 shares during the last quarter. Fulcrum Asset Management LLP purchased a new stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group in the third quarter valued at $738,000. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 68.7% in the third quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,802 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $588,000 after acquiring an additional 1,955 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.42% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Beth Costello sold 31,597 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.75, for a total transaction of $4,289,292.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 82,988 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,265,621. This represents a 27.58% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 1.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HIG has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on The Hartford Insurance Group from $145.00 to $135.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $155.00 to $149.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased 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 note on Monday, October 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $144.69.

The Hartford Insurance Group Price Performance

HIG stock opened at $134.88 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $120.42 and a 52-week high of $146.07. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $132.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $135.52.

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG - Get Free Report) last released 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 firm had revenue of $7.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.37 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.78 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. will post 13.34 EPS 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 issued a $0.67 dividend. This is a positive change from The Hartford Insurance Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 1st. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The Hartford Insurance Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.53%.

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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