Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC Buys 509 Shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 0.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 66,127 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 509 shares during the period. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $7,234,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 7.1% in the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 111,134 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $13,063,000 after acquiring an additional 7,350 shares during the last quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd boosted its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd now owns 137,506 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $16,172,000 after acquiring an additional 4,449 shares during the period. Horizon Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the 4th quarter worth $277,000. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI purchased a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the 3rd quarter worth $19,005,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 437.9% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 871,318 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $95,322,000 after acquiring an additional 709,324 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on HIG. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $139.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $130.00 to $126.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com downgraded The Hartford Financial Services Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Piper Sandler increased their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $127.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $100.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, The Hartford Financial Services Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.94.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Christopher Swift sold 98,061 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.39, for a total value of $11,805,563.79. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 211,082 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,412,161.98. The trade was a 31.72 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 13,138 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.20, for a total transaction of $1,539,773.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,678 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,712,661.60. This represents a 29.32 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Performance

Shares of HIG stock opened at $119.20 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.52, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.91. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a one year low of $94.47 and a one year high of $124.90. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $114.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $115.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.32.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.26. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 11.72% and a return on equity of 19.55%. Equities analysts anticipate that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.74%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s payout ratio is 20.10%.

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.