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

StockNews.com upgraded shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on HIG. Piper Sandler upped their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $112.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $121.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $122.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. Argus raised shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $120.88.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Performance

Shares of HIG stock opened at $118.14 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $116.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $108.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.25 billion, a PE ratio of 11.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.94. The Hartford Financial Services Group has a 52-week low of $75.83 and a 52-week high of $123.23.

The Hartford Financial Services Group declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Thursday, July 25th that allows the company to buyback $3.30 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the insurance provider to buy up to 10.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This is a positive change from The Hartford Financial Services Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.76%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s payout ratio is currently 18.84%.

Institutional Trading of The Hartford Financial Services Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,809,358 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $584,177,000 after buying an additional 69,007 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 4.9% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,497,960 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $150,605,000 after acquiring an additional 70,018 shares in the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. boosted its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 2.4% during the second quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 1,367,400 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $137,478,000 after acquiring an additional 31,806 shares during the last quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. increased its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 1,229,133 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $123,577,000 after purchasing an additional 40,400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. raised its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 22.7% in the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 1,199,542 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $141,078,000 after purchasing an additional 221,778 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

About The Hartford Financial Services Group

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.