Northern Trust Corp Purchases 519,717 Shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG - Free Report) by 17.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,537,665 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 519,717 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned approximately 1.22% of The Hartford Financial Services Group worth $387,021,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. World Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $661,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $514,000. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 73.0% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 17,774 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $2,090,000 after buying an additional 7,500 shares in the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp boosted its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 10,029 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,180,000 after buying an additional 384 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp bought a new position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $420,000. Institutional investors own 93.42% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Raymond James raised their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $126.00 to $125.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $139.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $126.87.

Insider Transactions at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In other The Hartford Financial Services Group news, CEO Christopher Swift sold 98,061 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.39, for a total value of $11,805,563.79. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 211,082 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $25,412,161.98. This trade represents a 31.72 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Allison G. Niderno sold 1,086 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.42, for a total value of $129,690.12. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 622 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $74,279.24. This represents a 63.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 113,429 shares of company stock valued at $13,618,028. 1.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Performance

NYSE:HIG traded up $0.63 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $126.29. 360,527 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,567,502. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.88 billion, a PE ratio of 12.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.68. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a one year low of $98.16 and a one year high of $126.41. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $118.58 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $115.51.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The insurance provider reported $2.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $6.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.97 billion. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 11.72% and a return on equity of 19.55%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.34 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.65%. The Hartford Financial Services Group's payout ratio is 20.74%.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Profile

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.