Eastern Bank Trims Position in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Eastern Bank lessened its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 1.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 208,055 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 3,590 shares during the quarter. Eastern Bank owned about 0.07% of The Hartford Financial Services Group worth $22,761,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,809,358 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $584,177,000 after acquiring an additional 69,007 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 17.3% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,938,421 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $430,272,000 after purchasing an additional 581,103 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 4.9% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,497,960 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $150,605,000 after purchasing an additional 70,018 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 22.7% in the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 1,199,542 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $141,078,000 after purchasing an additional 221,778 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec lifted its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 42.1% in the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 935,298 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $110,000,000 after purchasing an additional 277,295 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America boosted their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $121.00 to $124.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. UBS Group boosted their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $134.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $122.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $100.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Barclays raised The Hartford Financial Services Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $130.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $122.50.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HIG traded up $0.92 during trading on Monday, hitting $107.23. 1,112,816 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,441,272. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.32. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $81.87 and a 52-week high of $124.90. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $114.43 and its 200 day simple moving average is $112.40. The company has a market cap of $31.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.74, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.98.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were given a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.94%. This is a boost from The Hartford Financial Services Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.84%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Adin M. Tooker sold 6,865 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.04, for a total transaction of $803,479.60. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 25,820 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,021,972.80. This trade represents a 21.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.