Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Has $578.47 Million Stock Holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lowered its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,287,632 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 68,350 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $578,468,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in HIG. Horizon Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in The Hartford Financial Services Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $277,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 437.9% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 871,318 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $95,322,000 after purchasing an additional 709,324 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,701,675 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $514,363,000 after buying an additional 202,487 shares during the last quarter. Suncoast Equity Management bought a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group during the 4th quarter worth about $311,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 62.1% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 28,622 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,131,000 after buying an additional 10,964 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In related news, CEO Christopher Swift sold 98,061 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.39, for a total value of $11,805,563.79. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 211,082 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,412,161.98. This trade represents a 31.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 13,138 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.20, for a total value of $1,539,773.60. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,678 shares in the company, valued at $3,712,661.60. This trade represents a 29.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 112,343 shares of company stock valued at $13,488,337 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HIG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $118.00 to $117.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $140.00 to $133.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $125.00 target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $125.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $126.00 to $125.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Eight investment 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $124.13.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Performance

HIG opened at $117.84 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.32. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $117.07 and a 200 day simple moving average of $115.35. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $94.47 and a 1 year high of $125.08. The company has a market capitalization of $33.94 billion, a PE ratio of 11.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.68.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.26. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 11.72% and a return on equity of 19.55%. Research analysts expect that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 11.11 EPS for the current year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.77%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.10%.

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.