Wells Fargo & Company Issues Positive Forecast for The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG) Stock Price

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG) had its price objective raised by equities researchers at Wells Fargo & Company from $156.00 to $160.00 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the insurance provider’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s target price points to a potential upside of 14.56% from the company’s previous close.

HIG has been the subject of several other reports. Roth Mkm boosted their price target on The Hartford Insurance Group from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on The Hartford Insurance Group from $143.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Evercore boosted their price target on The Hartford Insurance Group from $137.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on The Hartford Insurance Group from $140.00 to $142.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded The Hartford Insurance Group from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, The Hartford Insurance Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $148.25.

The Hartford Insurance Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:HIG traded up $0.77 during trading on Thursday, reaching $139.67. 63,054 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,545,535. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The firm has a market cap of $38.53 billion, a PE ratio of 10.46, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.53. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $137.89 and a 200-day moving average price of $134.24. The Hartford Insurance Group has a 12 month low of $112.81 and a 12 month high of $144.50.

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $4.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.22 by $0.84. The business had revenue of $7.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.29 billion. The Hartford Insurance Group had a return on equity of 21.92% and a net margin of 13.52%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.94 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that The Hartford Insurance Group will post 11.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at The Hartford Insurance Group

In other news, CEO Christopher Swift sold 201,938 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.41, for a total transaction of $27,546,362.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 194,817 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,574,986.97. This represents a 50.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Lori A. Rodden sold 40,693 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.05, for a total transaction of $5,617,668.65. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 25,392 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,505,365.60. This trade represents a 61.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 349,282 shares of company stock valued at $48,184,324 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Haven Private LLC increased its holdings in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Haven Private LLC now owns 6,751 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $930,000 after buying an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC now owns 1,745 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $240,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 40.3% during the fourth quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 268 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 17,646 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,432,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 5.8% in the third quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 1,459 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $195,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. 93.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About The Hartford Insurance Group

The Hartford Financial Services Group, commonly known as The Hartford, is a U.S.-based insurance and investment company that provides a broad range of commercial and personal insurance products and employee benefits. Its core businesses include property and casualty insurance for businesses and individuals, group benefits such as group life, disability and dental plans, and retirement and investment solutions offered through affiliated asset-management operations. The company also delivers risk management, claims-handling and loss-prevention services designed to support policyholders across a variety of industries.

Founded in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1810, The Hartford is one of the oldest insurance organizations in the United States and has a long history of underwriting and product development across multiple insurance lines.