Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Reduces Holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. $HIG

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lessened its stake in The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,640,867 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 74,696 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group were worth $618,998,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in HIG. Allianz Asset Management GmbH raised its holdings in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 24.9% during the third quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 706,293 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $94,212,000 after acquiring an additional 140,624 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management increased its position in The Hartford Insurance Group by 109.2% in the 3rd quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 25,174 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,358,000 after purchasing an additional 13,138 shares during the last quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan raised its stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 252.7% during the 3rd quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan now owns 24,540 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,245,000 after purchasing an additional 17,582 shares in the last quarter. National Pension Service lifted its holdings in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 6.7% during the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 509,580 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $67,973,000 after buying an additional 31,912 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raiffeisen Bank International AG grew its stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 102.0% in the 3rd quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG now owns 20,709 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,739,000 after buying an additional 10,455 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $151.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Roth Mkm raised their price target on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $145.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $138.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on The Hartford Insurance Group from $140.00 to $142.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $148.13.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Lori A. Rodden sold 5,681 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.83, for a total value of $805,736.23. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 18,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,609,672. This trade represents a 23.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Beth Ann Costello sold 35,339 shares of The Hartford Insurance Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.58, for a total value of $4,826,600.62. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 77,574 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,595,056.92. This trade represents a 31.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 343,928 shares of company stock valued at $47,393,256. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

The Hartford Insurance Group Stock Performance

HIG opened at $141.00 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $137.19 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $133.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.60. The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $107.49 and a 12-month high of $144.50.

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $4.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.22 by $0.84. The business had revenue of $7.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.29 billion. The Hartford Insurance Group had a net margin of 13.52% and a return on equity of 21.92%. The Hartford Insurance Group’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.94 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hartford Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The Hartford Insurance Group’s payout ratio is presently 17.99%.

The Hartford Insurance Group 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.