First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. Has $447,000 Holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. grew its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 27.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,556 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,191 shares during the quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $447,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in HIG. GoalVest Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 464.8% during the 4th quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 305 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 251 shares during the last quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in The Hartford Financial Services Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. CVA Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Selway Asset Management bought a new position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. 93.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on HIG. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $117.00 to $111.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 29th. UBS Group raised their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $100.00 to $107.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $110.00 to $109.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $114.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $120.00 price target (up from $100.00) on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, The Hartford Financial Services Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $105.44.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Performance

Shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock opened at $97.90 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 50 day simple moving average of $98.81 and a 200 day simple moving average of $87.34. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $67.05 and a fifty-two week high of $103.64. The firm has a market cap of $28.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.90.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The insurance provider reported $2.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.43 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $6.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.68 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 10.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 4th were given a dividend of $0.47 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 1st. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.92%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s payout ratio is currently 21.36%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Adin M. Tooker sold 8,206 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.60, for a total transaction of $784,493.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 25,820 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,468,392. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other The Hartford Financial Services Group news, EVP Michael R. Fisher sold 27,004 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.90, for a total value of $2,670,695.60. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 18,906 shares in the company, valued at $1,869,803.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Adin M. Tooker sold 8,206 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.60, for a total value of $784,493.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 25,820 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,468,392. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 106,501 shares of company stock valued at $10,141,126 in the last ninety days. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

The Hartford Financial Services Group 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.