Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC Increases Stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 108,488 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,309 shares during the quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $8,720,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. GoalVest Advisory LLC grew its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 464.8% during the 4th quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 305 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 251 shares in the last quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. CVA Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Selway Asset Management purchased a new position in The Hartford Financial Services Group during the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. 93.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on HIG shares. TD Cowen upped their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group to $144.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $106.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $92.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $109.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $120.00 price target (up previously from $100.00) on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $105.56.

Insider Buying and Selling at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In other news, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 14,528 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.97, for a total transaction of $1,365,196.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 46,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,397,044.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 14,528 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.97, for a total transaction of $1,365,196.16. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 46,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,397,044.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael R. Fisher sold 27,004 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.90, for a total value of $2,670,695.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 18,906 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,869,803.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 202,264 shares of company stock valued at $18,438,369 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Trading Up 1.6 %

NYSE:HIG traded up $1.53 on Friday, reaching $98.48. 478,537 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,789,900. The business has a fifty day moving average of $97.64 and a 200-day moving average of $85.06. 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 Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $67.05 and a 52-week high of $103.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.89.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 2nd. The insurance provider reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by $0.62. The company had revenue of $6.40 billion for 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 firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.31 EPS. As a group, analysts expect 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 business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 4th were issued a dividend of $0.47 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 1st. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.91%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.53%.

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.