DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main Has $15.82 Million Holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main trimmed its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG - Free Report) by 15.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 144,588 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 26,074 shares during the period. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main's holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $15,818,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 3,342.9% during the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 241 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares during the last quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. lifted its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 46.5% during the 4th quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 293 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. DT Investment Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 49.8% in the 4th quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 331 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the period. Finally, Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in The Hartford Financial Services Group during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. 93.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on HIG. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $140.00 to $133.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $118.00 to $117.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. 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 research report on Tuesday, April 1st. StockNews.com cut The Hartford Financial Services Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on 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. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, The Hartford Financial Services Group currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $126.87.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Trading Down 1.1%

HIG traded down $1.43 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $126.50. The stock had a trading volume of 552,217 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,572,540. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $119.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $115.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.70. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $98.16 and a 1-year high of $129.75.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $6.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.97 billion. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a return on equity of 19.55% and a net margin of 11.72%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.34 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 11.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. The Hartford Financial Services Group's payout ratio is presently 20.74%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

The Hartford Financial Services Group Company 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.