The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) Receives $122.94 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Nine 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 company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $122.94.

Several research firms have recently commented on HIG. Barclays raised shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $130.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $127.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $125.00 price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. BMO Capital Markets increased 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. Finally, StockNews.com raised The Hartford Financial Services Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On The Hartford Financial Services Group

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the 4th quarter valued at $416,340,000. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd lifted its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 265.5% in the fourth quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 1,213,074 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $132,710,000 after acquiring an additional 881,224 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 48.1% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,264,397 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $247,761,000 after acquiring an additional 735,170 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 437.9% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 871,318 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $95,322,000 after purchasing an additional 709,324 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 31,680.4% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 694,084 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $816,310,000 after purchasing an additional 691,900 shares in the last quarter. 93.42% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Trading Down 0.9 %

HIG opened at $111.37 on Thursday. The Hartford Financial Services Group has a 52 week low of $93.78 and a 52 week high of $124.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.95 and a 200-day simple moving average of $114.09. The firm has a market cap of $32.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.97.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analysts expect that The Hartford Financial Services Group will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. 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.