Whittier Trust Co. Trims Stock Holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Whittier Trust Co. lowered its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 4.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,475 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 180 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co.’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $380,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 3,342.9% during the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 241 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. raised its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 46.5% during the fourth quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 293 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas acquired a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. DT Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 49.8% during the fourth quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 331 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $100.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $125.00 price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $130.00 to $126.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays upgraded The Hartford Financial Services Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $130.00 to $135.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, StockNews.com cut The Hartford Financial Services Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, The Hartford Financial Services Group currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $122.94.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Performance

Shares of HIG stock opened at $119.20 on Monday. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $94.47 and a 12-month high of $124.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.91. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $114.36 and a 200 day simple moving average of $115.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.32.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.26. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a return on equity of 19.55% and a net margin of 11.72%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 11.11 EPS for the current year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In other The Hartford Financial Services Group news, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 13,138 shares of the 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 completion of 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 trade represents a 29.32 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christopher Swift sold 98,061 shares of the 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.