300 Shares in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) Purchased by Bank & Trust Co

Bank & Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 300 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $30,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HIG. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 7.2% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 134,991 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $10,856,000 after buying an additional 9,016 shares in the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp lifted its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 28.7% in the fourth quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 4,377 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $352,000 after purchasing an additional 977 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $11,394,000. Nilsine Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC now owns 3,196 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $257,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 49.9% in the fourth quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,590 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $369,000 after purchasing an additional 1,527 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Beth Ann Costello sold 72,076 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.71, for a total value of $7,186,697.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 69,169 shares in the company, valued at $6,896,840.99. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other The Hartford Financial Services Group news, CFO Beth Ann Costello sold 72,076 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.71, for a total transaction of $7,186,697.96. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 69,169 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,896,840.99. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael R. Fisher sold 4,088 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.47, for a total transaction of $414,809.36. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,818 shares in the company, valued at $1,503,582.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 94,499 shares of company stock worth $9,449,309. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of HIG stock traded up $0.22 on Tuesday, hitting $105.08. The stock had a trading volume of 1,618,886 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,674,335. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.94, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.92. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $102.47 and its 200-day moving average is $98.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.32. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $68.82 and a 52-week high of $112.65.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The insurance provider reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.26. The business had revenue of $6.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.02 billion. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 11.44% and a return on equity of 21.20%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.88 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 10.07 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, July 25th that allows the company to repurchase $3.30 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the insurance provider to repurchase up to 10.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be paid a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.79%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.36%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Roth Mkm upped their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Evercore ISI boosted 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. Citigroup lowered shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $116.00 to $114.00 in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Argus raised shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $120.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, The Hartford Financial Services Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $110.88.

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.