The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eighteen brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have issued a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $148.1250.

Several equities analysts have commented on HIG shares. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $151.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $143.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Mizuho began coverage on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $160.00 price target on the stock. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $152.00 to $161.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $138.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other The Hartford Insurance Group news, EVP Lori A. Rodden sold 40,693 shares of The Hartford Insurance Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.05, for a total value of $5,617,668.65. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 25,392 shares in the company, valued at $3,505,365.60. The trade was a 61.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Christopher Swift sold 100,970 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.78, for a total value of $14,214,556.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 194,817 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,426,337.26. The trade was a 34.14% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 384,621 shares of company stock worth $53,010,925 in the last ninety days. 1.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On The Hartford Insurance Group

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in HIG. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in The Hartford Insurance Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $207,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in The Hartford Insurance Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,559,000. XTX Topco Ltd grew its stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 90.8% during the second quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 15,894 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,016,000 after buying an additional 7,563 shares during the last quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 12,587.0% during the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 115,579 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $14,664,000 after buying an additional 114,668 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 48.0% during the second quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 25,832 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,277,000 after buying an additional 8,377 shares in the last quarter. 93.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

The Hartford Insurance Group Stock Performance

NYSE:HIG opened at $134.79 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $37.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.10, a PEG ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.60. The Hartford Insurance Group has a fifty-two week low of $107.49 and a fifty-two week high of $144.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.31. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $136.84 and a 200-day moving average price of $133.95.

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $4.06 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $7.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.29 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.94 earnings per share. The Hartford Insurance Group’s revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that The Hartford Insurance Group will post 11.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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 of this dividend is Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The Hartford Insurance Group’s payout ratio is 17.99%.

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.