The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) Shares Purchased by LVW Advisors LLC

LVW Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 12.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,996 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 539 shares during the period. LVW Advisors LLC’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $515,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise increased its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 378.8% during the first quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 16,725 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,724,000 after purchasing an additional 13,232 shares during the last quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 11.7% in the fourth quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,165 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $254,000 after acquiring an additional 331 shares in the last quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter worth $2,875,000. Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 14.2% in the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 261,995 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $21,059,000 after acquiring an additional 32,534 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New Millennium Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter worth $1,552,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Trading Down 0.6 %

NYSE HIG opened at $99.89 on Tuesday. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $68.82 and a 12 month high of $105.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.31. The company has a market capitalization of $29.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.93. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $100.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $94.63.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The insurance provider reported $2.34 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.43 by ($0.09). The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 10.87% and a return on equity of 20.64%. The company had revenue of $6.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.68 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 9.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 3rd will be given a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 3rd. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.88%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s payout ratio is currently 21.36%.

Insider Transactions at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In other news, EVP Jonathan R. Bennett sold 18,335 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.78, for a total value of $1,847,801.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 25,643 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,584,301.54. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, EVP Jonathan R. Bennett sold 18,335 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.78, for a total value of $1,847,801.30. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 25,643 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,584,301.54. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Beth Ann Costello sold 72,076 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.71, for a total transaction of $7,186,697.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 69,169 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,896,840.99. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on HIG. Roth Mkm increased their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $117.00 to $111.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $114.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group to $144.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $106.71.

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.