The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG) Stock: Insider Beth Ann Costello Sells 31,597 Shares

The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) CFO Beth Costello sold 31,597 shares of The Hartford Insurance Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.75, for a total transaction of $4,289,292.75. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 82,988 shares in the company, valued at $11,265,621. This trade represents a 27.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

The Hartford Insurance Group Price Performance

NYSE:HIG traded up $3.15 on Wednesday, hitting $138.07. The company had a trading volume of 1,804,869 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,655,323. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.36, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a current ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $132.87 and a two-hundred day moving average of $135.39. The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $120.42 and a 52 week high of $146.07.

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG) last posted its earnings results on Monday, October 26th. The insurance provider reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.17 by $0.33. The firm had revenue of $7.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.37 billion. The Hartford Insurance Group had a net margin of 15.85% and a return on equity of 20.93%. The company’s revenue was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.78 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. will post 13.28 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hartford Insurance Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be paid a $0.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 1st. This is a positive change from The Hartford Insurance Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The Hartford Insurance Group’s payout ratio is currently 14.53%.

Institutional Trading of The Hartford Insurance Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. MidFirst Bank purchased a new stake in The Hartford Insurance Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Navigoe LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Phillip James Consulting Co. bought a new position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group in the first quarter worth approximately $29,000. Polaris Financial Partners bought a new position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group in the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, Clearstead Trust LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group in the second quarter worth $29,000. Institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on HIG. Weiss Ratings upgraded The Hartford Insurance Group from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. UBS Group cut their price target on The Hartford Insurance Group from $155.00 to $149.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $145.00 to $135.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Piper Sandler downgraded shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $148.00 to $146.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $144.69.

About The Hartford Insurance Group

The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc, commonly known as The Hartford, is a financial services and insurance company headquartered in Hartford, Connecticut. Founded in 1810, the company provides property and casualty insurance, employee benefits, and related services to businesses, individuals, and organizations primarily in the United States.

The Hartford’s commercial insurance operations offer coverage for businesses of various sizes, including commercial auto, workers’ compensation, property, general liability, and specialty insurance.