The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) Price Target Raised to $125.00 at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) had its price objective boosted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $122.00 to $125.00 in a report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has a neutral rating on the insurance provider’s stock.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on HIG. UBS Group raised their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $134.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Bank of America lifted their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $121.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $113.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Argus upgraded The Hartford Financial Services Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $120.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $120.76.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Down 6.8 %

NYSE:HIG opened at $112.26 on Friday. The Hartford Financial Services Group has a 12-month low of $68.92 and a 12-month high of $123.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.76, a P/E/G ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.93. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $116.31 and its 200-day simple moving average is $106.98.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The insurance provider reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.26. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a return on equity of 21.20% and a net margin of 11.44%. The business had revenue of $6.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.02 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.88 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that The Hartford Financial Services Group will post 10.02 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.85%. This is an increase from The Hartford Financial Services Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s payout ratio is currently 23.64%.

The Hartford Financial Services Group announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, July 25th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.30 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the insurance provider to buy up to 10.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Trading of The Hartford Financial Services Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Trust Co. of Vermont increased its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 27.9% in the third quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 403 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Bailard Inc. increased its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 0.5% during the second quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 19,378 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,948,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC increased its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 3.1% during the first quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 3,736 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $385,000 after buying an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC increased its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 2.6% during the third quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC now owns 4,566 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $537,000 after buying an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 28.8% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 519 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Company 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.