The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) was downgraded by StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on HIG. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $125.00 target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $100.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Barclays upgraded The Hartford Financial Services Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $130.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $130.00 to $126.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $139.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, The Hartford Financial Services Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $122.94.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE HIG opened at $120.48 on Tuesday. The Hartford Financial Services Group has a fifty-two week low of $94.47 and a fifty-two week high of $124.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.32. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $113.49 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $114.94. The stock has a market cap of $34.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.91.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.26. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a return on equity of 19.55% and a net margin of 11.72%. On average, analysts forecast that The Hartford Financial Services Group will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In other news, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 13,138 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 31,678 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,712,661.60. This represents a 29.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of The Hartford Financial Services Group

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 3,342.9% in the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 241 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares during the period. Barrett & Company Inc. lifted its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 46.5% during the fourth 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 period. BNP Paribas purchased a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group during the third quarter worth $35,000. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

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.