The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) Shares Bought by MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd.

MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 5.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 129,664 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,006 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd.’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $14,185,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HIG. Horizon Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $277,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,701,675 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $514,363,000 after buying an additional 202,487 shares during the last quarter. Suncoast Equity Management acquired a new position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $311,000. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 62.1% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 28,622 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,131,000 after buying an additional 10,964 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp raised its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 13.9% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 46,868 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $5,127,000 after buying an additional 5,702 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Allison G. Niderno sold 1,086 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.42, for a total value of $129,690.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 622 shares in the company, valued at approximately $74,279.24. This represents a 63.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 13,138 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.20, for a total transaction of $1,539,773.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 31,678 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,712,661.60. This trade represents a 29.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 113,429 shares of company stock worth $13,618,028. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Price Performance

The Hartford Financial Services Group stock opened at $129.13 on Friday. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $98.16 and a 52-week high of $130.00. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $120.38 and a 200-day moving average of $116.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.48, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The insurance provider reported $2.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $6.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.97 billion. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 11.72% and a return on equity of 19.55%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.34 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 11.11 EPS for the current year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.61%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.74%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on HIG shares. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $125.00 price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $139.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. StockNews.com lowered shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $118.00 to $117.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $140.00 to $133.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $128.07.

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.