Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. Purchases New Shares in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 3,157 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $254,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HIG. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 7.2% during the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 17,704 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,271,000 after buying an additional 1,185 shares in the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 9.1% during the first quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 3,952 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $284,000 after buying an additional 330 shares in the last quarter. Prudential PLC acquired a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group during the first quarter worth about $674,000. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 88.6% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 11,238 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $807,000 after buying an additional 5,278 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. grew its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 235.4% during the first quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 1,070 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $77,000 after buying an additional 751 shares in the last quarter. 93.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In other news, CEO Christopher Swift sold 956 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 22nd. The shares were 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 owns 170,180 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,635,480. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CEO Christopher Swift sold 956 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 170,180 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,635,480. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Allison G. Niderno sold 1,332 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.74, for a total transaction of $119,533.68. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $56,536.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 202,264 shares of company stock valued at $18,438,369 in the last quarter. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Trading Up 2.1 %

NYSE:HIG traded up $2.00 on Friday, reaching $98.95. 1,484,941 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,638,250. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.89. The company’s 50 day moving average is $97.80 and its 200-day moving average is $85.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $67.05 and a 1-year high of $103.64.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 2nd. The insurance provider reported $3.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by $0.62. The business had revenue of $6.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.31 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 10.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 4th were given a dividend of $0.47 per share. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.90%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 1st. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.53%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on HIG shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $92.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $91.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $94.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $114.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $109.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $105.56.

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.