Share Repurchase Program Authorized by The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) Board of Directors

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, July 25th, RTT News reports. The company plans to repurchase $3.30 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the insurance provider to repurchase up to 10.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $104.00 to $116.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $117.00 to $111.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 29th. Argus boosted their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $104.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $114.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Roth Mkm boosted their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, The Hartford Financial Services Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $107.50.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Performance

NYSE:HIG traded up $0.36 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $102.30. The stock had a trading volume of 1,381,982 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,661,688. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.31. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $101.42 and a 200 day simple moving average of $97.19. The Hartford Financial Services Group has a twelve month low of $68.82 and a twelve month high of $106.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.63, a PEG ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.93.

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 for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $6.49 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.02 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 for the quarter was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.88 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that The Hartford Financial Services Group will post 9.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be paid a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.84%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 3rd. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.36%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other The Hartford Financial Services Group news, CFO Beth Ann Costello sold 72,076 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.71, for a total value of $7,186,697.96. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 69,169 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,896,840.99. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Michael R. Fisher sold 4,088 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.47, for a total transaction of $414,809.36. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,818 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,503,582.46. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Beth Ann Costello sold 72,076 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.71, for a total value of $7,186,697.96. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 69,169 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,896,840.99. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 94,499 shares of company stock worth $9,449,309. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.