Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Purchases 34,690 Shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 17.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 229,707 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 34,690 shares during the quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board owned 0.08% of The Hartford Financial Services Group worth $23,095,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 26.2% in the fourth quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 6,119,863 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $491,915,000 after acquiring an additional 1,272,290 shares in the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. raised its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 72.0% during the 1st quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 1,335,594 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $137,633,000 after acquiring an additional 559,019 shares during the period. Swedbank AB purchased a new position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the first quarter valued at about $53,980,000. KBC Group NV boosted its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 85.5% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,074,470 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $86,366,000 after acquiring an additional 495,192 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 793.3% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 325,412 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,156,000 after purchasing an additional 288,984 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Piper Sandler lifted 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 report on Monday, July 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $104.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Barclays assumed coverage on The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $130.00 target price for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $120.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, The Hartford Financial Services Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $113.22.

Insider Transactions at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In other news, EVP Michael R. Fisher sold 4,088 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.47, for a total value of $414,809.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,818 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,503,582.46. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Trading Up 0.3 %

NYSE HIG opened at $116.32 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.22, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.93. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $110.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $103.93. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $68.82 and a 12 month high of $117.84.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The insurance provider reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.26. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 11.44% and a return on equity of 21.20%. The firm had revenue of $6.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.88 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 10.09 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be given a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.62%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.36%.

The Hartford Financial Services Group announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, July 25th that allows the company to buyback $3.30 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the insurance provider to reacquire up to 10.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Company 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.