Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. Sells 12,831 Shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. decreased its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 887,198 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 12,831 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc.’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $71,313,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MV Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 8.9% during the 4th quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,416 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $114,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the period. Realta Investment Advisors raised its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Realta Investment Advisors now owns 3,635 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $292,000 after buying an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 8.4% during the fourth quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 1,715 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $129,000 after buying an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 2.4% during the third quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 5,857 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $415,000 after buying an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Perigon Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,204 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $258,000 after buying an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on HIG. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $96.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $94.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $114.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $109.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $77.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $105.56.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Down 2.0 %

NYSE HIG opened at $95.78 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company has a fifty day moving average of $97.49 and a two-hundred day moving average of $84.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.99, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.89. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $67.05 and a 52 week high of $103.64.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 2nd. The insurance provider reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.44 by $0.62. The company had revenue of $6.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.84 billion. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 10.21% and a return on equity of 19.82%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.31 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 10.13 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 4th were given a dividend of $0.47 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 1st. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.96%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.53%.

Insider Transactions at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In other news, EVP Michael R. Fisher sold 27,004 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.90, for a total transaction of $2,670,695.60. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 18,906 shares in the company, valued at $1,869,803.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Michael R. Fisher sold 27,004 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.90, for a total value of $2,670,695.60. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 18,906 shares in the company, valued at $1,869,803.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christopher Swift sold 956 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.00, for a total value of $82,216.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 170,180 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,635,480. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 249,082 shares of company stock worth $22,404,321. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.