Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Raises The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) Price Target to $133.00

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) had its target price hoisted by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $120.00 to $133.00 in a research report released on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the insurance provider’s stock.

HIG has been the topic of a number of other reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $117.00 to $111.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 29th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $96.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an in-line rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $112.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $104.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a sector perform rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $110.88.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock opened at $108.64 on Thursday. The Hartford Financial Services Group has a 1 year low of $68.82 and a 1 year high of $112.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market cap of $31.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.35, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.92. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $102.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is $98.46.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The insurance provider reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $6.49 billion for 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 company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.88 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that The Hartford Financial Services Group will post 10.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group announced that its board has approved a share 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 buy up to 10.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.47 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.73%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s payout ratio is presently 21.36%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Michael R. Fisher sold 4,088 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.47, for a total value of $414,809.36. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,818 shares in the company, valued at $1,503,582.46. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Michael R. Fisher sold 4,088 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,503,582.46. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jonathan R. Bennett sold 18,335 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.78, for a total transaction of $1,847,801.30. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 25,643 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,584,301.54. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 94,499 shares of company stock valued at $9,449,309 in the last ninety days. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of The Hartford Financial Services Group

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in HIG. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at $278,704,000. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 26.2% during the 4th quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 6,119,863 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $491,915,000 after purchasing an additional 1,272,290 shares during the period. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. increased its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 72.0% during the 1st quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 1,335,594 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $137,633,000 after purchasing an additional 559,019 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $53,980,000. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 85.5% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,074,470 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $86,366,000 after buying an additional 495,192 shares during the last quarter. 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.