The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) Shares Acquired by The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 357,259 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,149 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.12% of The Hartford Financial Services Group worth $35,919,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MBB Public Markets I LLC raised its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 877.5% during the second quarter. MBB Public Markets I LLC now owns 20,830 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,094,000 after purchasing an additional 18,699 shares during the last quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. raised its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 8.3% during the 2nd quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 737,438 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $69,178,000 after buying an additional 56,664 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 4.9% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,497,960 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $150,605,000 after buying an additional 70,018 shares in the last quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp boosted its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 58.6% in the 2nd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 56,953 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $5,726,000 after buying an additional 21,042 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Xponance Inc. increased its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 46,526 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $4,678,000 after acquiring an additional 276 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Price Performance

HIG stock opened at $117.61 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $112.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $104.72. The company has a market cap of $34.78 billion, a PE ratio of 13.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a current ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. 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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $6.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.02 billion. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 11.44% and a return on equity of 21.20%. The company’s revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.88 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 10.09 EPS 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. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.47 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.60%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.36%.

The Hartford Financial Services Group declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, July 25th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.30 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the insurance provider to reacquire up to 10.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HIG has been the topic of several recent research reports. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $113.00 to $111.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $120.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $109.00 to $107.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $112.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $113.22.

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.