Corient Private Wealth LLC Decreases Holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Corient Private Wealth LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 3.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 88,207 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 3,306 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $9,647,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd boosted its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 265.5% in the 4th quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 1,213,074 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $132,710,000 after buying an additional 881,224 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 437.9% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 871,318 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $95,322,000 after buying an additional 709,324 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 11,904.7% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 631,565 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $632,000 after buying an additional 626,304 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in The Hartford Financial Services Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $65,256,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 17.3% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,938,421 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $430,272,000 after buying an additional 581,103 shares during the last quarter. 93.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on HIG. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $130.00 to $126.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $125.00 target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com lowered shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Barclays upgraded shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $130.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $127.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.94.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 13,138 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.20, for a total value of $1,539,773.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,678 shares in the company, valued at $3,712,661.60. This trade represents a 29.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Christopher Swift sold 98,061 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.39, for a total transaction of $11,805,563.79. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 211,082 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,412,161.98. The trade was a 31.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HIG opened at $119.73 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $113.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $114.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.57, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.91. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $94.47 and a 52 week high of $124.90.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.26. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 11.72% and a return on equity of 19.55%. Analysts anticipate that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.10%.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Profile

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.