The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) Raised to “Buy” at StockNews.com

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) was upgraded by StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Tuesday.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Raymond James lifted their target price 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. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $125.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $126.00 to $125.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $125.00 target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $129.71.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Down 1.2%

The Hartford Financial Services Group stock opened at $129.66 on Tuesday. The Hartford Financial Services Group has a 1-year low of $98.16 and a 1-year high of $132.09. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $121.48 and a 200-day moving average price of $116.66. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $36.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.53, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.70.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The insurance provider reported $2.20 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.05. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a return on equity of 19.55% and a net margin of 11.72%. The company had revenue of $6.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.97 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.34 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that The Hartford Financial Services Group will post 11.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In other The Hartford Financial Services Group news, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 13,138 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.20, for a total value of $1,539,773.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 31,678 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,712,661.60. This represents a 29.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Christopher Swift sold 1,144 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.00, for a total transaction of $143,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 211,082 shares in the company, valued at $26,385,250. The trade was a 0.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 113,429 shares of company stock worth $13,618,028. 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of The Hartford Financial Services Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HIG. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,251,389 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $792,796,000 after acquiring an additional 81,495 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position 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 purchasing an additional 202,487 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 11.3% during the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,936,615 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $487,077,000 after purchasing an additional 398,950 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 6.5% in 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 valued at $419,053,000 after purchasing an additional 234,320 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $416,340,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.