Cantor Fitzgerald Cuts The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG) Price Target to $160.00

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG) had its target price trimmed by Cantor Fitzgerald from $165.00 to $160.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the insurance provider’s stock.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Evercore upped their target price on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $137.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $138.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $152.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $140.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $150.33.

The Hartford Insurance Group Trading Down 2.2%

NYSE:HIG opened at $137.36 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.31. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $138.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $134.35. The Hartford Insurance Group has a one year low of $112.81 and a one year high of $144.50.

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $4.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.22 by $0.84. The company had revenue of $7.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.29 billion. The Hartford Insurance Group had a net margin of 13.52% and a return on equity of 21.92%. The Hartford Insurance Group’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.94 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that The Hartford Insurance Group will post 11.11 EPS for the current year.

The Hartford Insurance Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 2nd. The Hartford Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio is 17.99%.

Insider Activity

In other The Hartford Insurance Group news, CEO Christopher Swift sold 201,938 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.41, for a total transaction of $27,546,362.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 194,817 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,574,986.97. This represents a 50.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Lori A. Rodden sold 40,693 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.05, for a total transaction of $5,617,668.65. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 25,392 shares in the company, valued at $3,505,365.60. This represents a 61.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 349,282 shares of company stock valued at $48,184,324 in the last three months. Insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of The Hartford Insurance Group

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in HIG. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 707.7% during the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 210 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 184 shares in the last quarter. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. United Financial Planning Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. 93.42% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About The Hartford Insurance Group

The Hartford Financial Services Group, commonly known as The Hartford, is a U.S.-based insurance and investment company that provides a broad range of commercial and personal insurance products and employee benefits. Its core businesses include property and casualty insurance for businesses and individuals, group benefits such as group life, disability and dental plans, and retirement and investment solutions offered through affiliated asset-management operations. The company also delivers risk management, claims-handling and loss-prevention services designed to support policyholders across a variety of industries.

Founded in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1810, The Hartford is one of the oldest insurance organizations in the United States and has a long history of underwriting and product development across multiple insurance lines.