The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. provides insurance and financial services to individual and business customers in the United States, the United Kingdom, and internationally. Its Commercial Lines segment offers workers' compensation, property, automobile, liability, umbrella, bond, marine, livestock, and reinsurance; and customized insurance products and risk management services, including professional liability, bond, surety, and specialty casualty coverages through regional offices, branches, sales and policyholder service centers, independent retail agents and brokers, wholesale agents, and reinsurance brokers. The company's Personal Lines segment provides automobile, homeowners, and personal umbrella coverages through direct-to-consumer channel and independent agents. Its Property & Casualty Other Operations segment offers coverage for asbestos and environmental exposures. The company's Group Benefits segment provides group life, disability, and other group coverages to members of employer groups, associations, and affinity groups through direct insurance policies; reinsurance to other insurance companies; employer paid and voluntary product coverages; disability underwriting, administration, and claims processing to self-funded employer plans; and a single-company leave management solution. This segment distributes its group insurance products and services through brokers, consultants, third-party administrators, trade associations, and private exchanges. Its Hartford Funds segment offers investment products for retail and retirement accounts; exchange-traded products through broker-dealer organizations, independent financial advisers, defined contribution plans, financial consultants, bank trust groups, and registered investment advisers; and investment management and administrative services, such as product design, implementation, and oversight. The company was founded in 1810 and is headquartered in Hartford, Connecticut.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $77.00 to $73.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $77.00 to $72.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 12th. Raymond James upped their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $80.00 to $85.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $77.00 to $71.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 1st. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $80.00 to $78.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 1st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, The Hartford Financial Services Group presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $80.27.
The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Up 0.7 %
Shares of NYSE:HIG traded up $0.44 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $64.60. The company had a trading volume of 1,512,955 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,053,049. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $65.77 and a two-hundred day moving average of $69.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.30. The company has a market capitalization of $20.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.63, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.93. The Hartford Financial Services Group has a 12-month low of $61.59 and a 12-month high of $78.17.
The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG - Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 28th. The insurance provider reported $2.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.52 by $0.63. The business had revenue of $3.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.53 billion. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 9.42% and a return on equity of 15.03%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.33 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that The Hartford Financial Services Group will post 7.15 EPS for the current year.
The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 4th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 1st will be given a $0.385 dividend. This represents a $1.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.38%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 31st. The Hartford Financial Services Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.33%.