Wesbanco Bank Inc. Takes Position in The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. $HIG

Wesbanco Bank Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor purchased 4,955 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $661,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of HIG. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group by 707.7% in the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 210 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the period. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in The Hartford Insurance Group in the third quarter worth about $27,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC lifted its position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 151.1% during the 2nd quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 221 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC grew its stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 72.8% during the 2nd quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 235 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares during the period. Finally, Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in The Hartford Insurance Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Christopher Swift sold 201,938 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.41, for a total value of $27,546,362.58. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 194,817 shares in the company, valued at $26,574,986.97. The trade was a 50.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Beth Ann Costello sold 35,339 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.58, for a total transaction of $4,826,600.62. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 77,574 shares in the company, valued at $10,595,056.92. This represents a 31.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 338,247 shares of company stock valued at $46,587,520 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on HIG shares. Argus upped their price target on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $143.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $160.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. UBS Group increased their price target on The Hartford Insurance Group from $151.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Evercore boosted their price objective on The Hartford Insurance Group from $137.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald increased their target price on The Hartford Insurance Group from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, The Hartford Insurance Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $148.13.

The Hartford Insurance Group Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of HIG stock opened at $141.92 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.61. The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $107.49 and a 12-month high of $144.50. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $135.49 and its 200-day moving average price is $132.18.

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $4.06 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.84. The Hartford Insurance Group had a return on equity of 21.92% and a net margin of 13.52%.The firm had revenue of $7.34 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.29 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.94 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. will post 11.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Insurance Group Company Profile

The Hartford Financial Services Group, commonly known as The Hartford, is a U.S.-based insurance and investment company that provides a broad range of commercial and personal insurance products and employee benefits. Its core businesses include property and casualty insurance for businesses and individuals, group benefits such as group life, disability and dental plans, and retirement and investment solutions offered through affiliated asset-management operations. The company also delivers risk management, claims-handling and loss-prevention services designed to support policyholders across a variety of industries.

Founded in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1810, The Hartford is one of the oldest insurance organizations in the United States and has a long history of underwriting and product development across multiple insurance lines.