Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. Takes $206,000 Position in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. bought a new stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund bought 2,557 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $206,000.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 49.9% in the 4th quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,590 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $369,000 after acquiring an additional 1,527 shares during the period. Nilsine Partners LLC raised its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC now owns 3,196 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $257,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $11,394,000. Boston Trust Walden Corp raised its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 28.7% in the 4th quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 4,377 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $352,000 after acquiring an additional 977 shares during the period. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 7.2% in the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 134,991 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $10,856,000 after acquiring an additional 9,016 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Price Performance

NYSE HIG opened at $97.73 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $67.05 and a 12-month high of $103.64. The company has a market capitalization of $29.06 billion, a PE ratio of 12.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.89. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $97.37 and its 200-day moving average is $84.90.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 2nd. The insurance provider reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by $0.62. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 10.21% and a return on equity of 19.82%. The company had revenue of $6.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.84 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.31 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 10.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, March 4th were paid a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 1st. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.92%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.53%.

Insider Activity at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In related news, EVP Michael R. Fisher sold 27,004 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.90, for a total value of $2,670,695.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 18,906 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,869,803.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, EVP Michael R. Fisher sold 27,004 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.90, for a total value of $2,670,695.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 18,906 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,869,803.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Christopher Swift sold 956 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.00, for a total transaction of $82,216.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 170,180 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,635,480. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 249,082 shares of company stock valued at $22,404,321. 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on HIG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $91.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $77.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and set a $120.00 target price (up from $100.00) on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a report on Monday, April 1st. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $96.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $109.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $105.47.

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.