BNP Paribas Financial Markets Buys 124,997 Shares of The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. $HIG

BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 23.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 659,088 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 124,997 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group were worth $90,822,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of HIG. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 44.0% in the fourth quarter. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC now owns 10,094 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,391,000 after purchasing an additional 3,083 shares during the last quarter. Forsta AP Fonden grew its position in The Hartford Insurance Group by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 170,300 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $23,467,000 after purchasing an additional 6,900 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in The Hartford Insurance Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $611,724,000. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. purchased a new stake in The Hartford Insurance Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $8,933,000. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in The Hartford Insurance Group by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,150 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $985,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. 93.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, President Adin M. Tooker sold 8,895 shares of The Hartford Insurance Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.13, for a total value of $1,201,981.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the president owned 38,208 shares in the company, valued at $5,163,047.04. This trade represents a 18.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Lori A. Rodden sold 40,693 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.05, for a total transaction of $5,617,668.65. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 25,392 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,505,365.60. This trade represents a 61.58% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

The Hartford Insurance Group Stock Performance

NYSE:HIG opened at $126.67 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.31. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $135.38 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $136.00. The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $119.61 and a 1 year high of $144.50. The company has a market capitalization of $34.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.47.

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The insurance provider reported $3.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.39 by ($0.30). The Hartford Insurance Group had a return on equity of 22.52% and a net margin of 14.10%.The firm had revenue of $7.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.41 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.20 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. will post 13.17 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hartford Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be given a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. The Hartford Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.87%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HIG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald cut their target price on The Hartford Insurance Group from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on The Hartford Insurance Group from $136.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Barclays cut their price objective on The Hartford Insurance Group from $159.00 to $156.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $149.00 price objective (down from $163.00) on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group in a research report on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on The Hartford Insurance Group from $156.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $149.31.

About The Hartford Insurance Group

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.