Wells Fargo & Company Cuts The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) Price Target to $125.00

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) had its price target trimmed by Wells Fargo & Company from $126.00 to $125.00 in a research note published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the insurance provider’s stock.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on HIG. StockNews.com lowered shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Barclays upgraded The Hartford Financial Services Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $130.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced 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 research report on Wednesday. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Raymond James lifted their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, The Hartford Financial Services Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $124.13.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Trading Up 1.1 %

NYSE:HIG opened at $116.05 on Thursday. The Hartford Financial Services Group has a 1 year low of $94.47 and a 1 year high of $125.08. 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 fifty day moving average price of $116.60 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $115.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.21, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.68.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Hartford Financial Services Group will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.79%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.10%.

Insider Activity at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In other The Hartford Financial Services Group news, CEO Christopher Swift sold 1,144 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.00, for a total value of $143,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 211,082 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,385,250. This trade represents a 0.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 13,138 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 $3,712,661.60. This represents a 29.32 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 112,343 shares of company stock valued at $13,488,337 in the last quarter. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On The Hartford Financial Services Group

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,251,389 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $792,796,000 after purchasing an additional 81,495 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,701,675 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $514,363,000 after acquiring an additional 202,487 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 17.3% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,938,421 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $430,272,000 after acquiring an additional 581,103 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,830,462 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $419,053,000 after buying an additional 234,320 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group during the fourth quarter worth $416,340,000. Institutional investors own 93.42% 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.