Strs Ohio Sells 23,804 Shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Strs Ohio cut its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 19.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 99,108 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 23,804 shares during the quarter. Strs Ohio’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $7,966,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. GoalVest Advisory LLC grew its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 464.8% in the fourth quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 305 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 251 shares in the last quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. CVA Family Office LLC acquired a new position in The Hartford Financial Services Group during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Selway Asset Management bought a new position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. 93.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In related news, CEO Christopher Swift sold 956 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.00, for a total transaction of $82,216.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 170,180 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,635,480. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, CFO Beth Ann Costello sold 38,915 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.42, for a total transaction of $3,713,269.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 69,169 shares in the company, valued at $6,600,105.98. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Christopher Swift sold 956 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.00, for a total value of $82,216.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 170,180 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,635,480. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 249,082 shares of company stock valued at $22,404,321. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on HIG shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $106.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $94.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday. Roth Mkm boosted their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Citigroup raised their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $109.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $77.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, The Hartford Financial Services Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $105.56.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Performance

HIG opened at $95.78 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.32. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $67.05 and a 52-week high of $103.64. The firm has a market cap of $28.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.89. The business’s fifty day moving average is $97.49 and its 200-day moving average is $84.97.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 2nd. The insurance provider reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.44 by $0.62. The firm had revenue of $6.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.84 billion. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 10.21% and a return on equity of 19.82%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.31 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 10.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 4th were paid a dividend of $0.47 per share. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.96%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 1st. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s payout ratio is presently 23.53%.

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.