54,618 Shares in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) Acquired by Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 54,618 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $5,975,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. boosted its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 13.0% in the 4th quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 550,364 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $60,210,000 after purchasing an additional 63,529 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 1,129,381 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $123,554,000 after purchasing an additional 27,783 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 7.4% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,633 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $288,000 after buying an additional 182 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 16.7% during the fourth quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 13,611 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,489,000 after buying an additional 1,943 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI raised its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 7,905 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $865,000 after buying an additional 662 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In related news, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 13,138 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.20, for a total value of $1,539,773.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,678 shares in the company, 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on HIG shares. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of 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. Barclays raised shares of 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 report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com raised shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $127.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $100.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $122.94.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Price Performance

Shares of HIG opened at $119.06 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $113.25 and its 200-day moving average is $114.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.98 billion, a PE ratio of 11.50, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.91. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $94.47 and a fifty-two week high of $124.90.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.26. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 11.72% and a return on equity of 19.55%. Equities analysts forecast that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 11.11 EPS for the current year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.75%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.10%.

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.