Rafferty Asset Management LLC Increases Stock Position in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Rafferty Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG - Free Report) by 3.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 102,282 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 2,942 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC's holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $11,190,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of HIG. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,251,389 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $792,796,000 after buying an additional 81,495 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,701,675 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $514,363,000 after buying an additional 202,487 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group during the fourth quarter worth $416,340,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 17.2% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,537,665 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $387,021,000 after acquiring an additional 519,717 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,448,982 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $377,319,000 after acquiring an additional 25,053 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.42% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on HIG shares. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $125.00 target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group raised their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $139.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $126.00 to $125.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. StockNews.com raised The Hartford Financial Services Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $140.00 to $133.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, The Hartford Financial Services Group currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $129.71.

Insider Buying and Selling at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In other The Hartford Financial Services Group news, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 13,138 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.20, for a total value of $1,539,773.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 31,678 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,712,661.60. This trade represents a 29.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Allison G. Niderno sold 1,086 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock in a transaction on Monday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.42, for a total transaction of $129,690.12. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 622 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $74,279.24. This trade represents a 63.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 113,429 shares of company stock valued at $13,618,028 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Down 0.4%

HIG stock traded down $0.53 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $131.14. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,019,238 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,568,806. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $98.16 and a 52-week high of $132.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.67, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.70. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $120.97 and a 200-day simple moving average of $116.47.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The insurance provider reported $2.20 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $0.05. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 11.72% and a return on equity of 19.55%. The company had revenue of $6.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.97 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.34 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 11.11 EPS for the current year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.59%. The Hartford Financial Services Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 20.74%.

About The Hartford Financial Services 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.