Wells Fargo & Company MN Sells 8,882 Shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Wells Fargo & Company MN reduced its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 1.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 503,469 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 8,882 shares during the quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $40,469,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 11.7% in the 4th quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,165 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $254,000 after purchasing an additional 331 shares in the last quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,875,000. New Millennium Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,552,000. SteelPeak Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,691,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 19.8% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 49,614 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $4,003,000 after acquiring an additional 8,203 shares during the last quarter. 93.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Allison G. Niderno sold 1,516 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.55, for a total value of $143,337.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $59,566.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other The Hartford Financial Services Group news, SVP Allison G. Niderno sold 1,516 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.55, for a total transaction of $143,337.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $59,566.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Beth Ann Costello sold 38,915 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.42, for a total transaction of $3,713,269.30. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 69,169 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,600,105.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 166,052 shares of company stock valued at $16,346,296. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $113.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, May 13th. Argus boosted their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $104.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted 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 report on Wednesday, April 10th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $96.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $100.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $105.88.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE:HIG opened at $101.28 on Monday. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $29.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.90. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a one year low of $67.42 and a one year high of $103.64. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $100.09 and a 200-day moving average price of $90.39.

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 the consensus estimate of $2.43 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $6.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.51 billion. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a return on equity of 20.64% and a net margin of 10.87%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.68 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 9.94 EPS for the current year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, June 3rd will be issued a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 31st. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.36%.

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.