The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. $HIG Shares Acquired by Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management boosted its holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 109.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 25,174 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,138 shares during the period. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management’s holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group were worth $3,358,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 37,160,644 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $4,714,571,000 after purchasing an additional 156,807 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in The Hartford Insurance Group by 0.8% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,467,018 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $943,448,000 after buying an additional 57,539 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in The Hartford Insurance Group by 2.9% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,834,472 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $613,349,000 after buying an additional 136,483 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 5.3% during the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 4,307,617 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $570,328,000 after acquiring an additional 215,941 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $506,329,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

The Hartford Insurance Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HIG opened at $142.21 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.32. The company has a market cap of $39.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.61. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $136.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $133.02. The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $107.49 and a 1-year high of $144.50.

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

The Hartford Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be given a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The Hartford Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.99%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Lori A. Rodden sold 5,681 shares of The Hartford Insurance Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.83, for a total transaction of $805,736.23. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 18,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,609,672. The trade was a 23.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Beth Ann Costello sold 35,339 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.58, for a total value of $4,826,600.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 77,574 shares in the company, valued at $10,595,056.92. This trade represents a 31.30% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 343,928 shares of company stock worth $47,393,256. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on HIG shares. Evercore lifted their target price on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $137.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Mizuho initiated coverage on The Hartford Insurance Group in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $160.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on The Hartford Insurance Group from $140.00 to $142.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on The Hartford Insurance Group in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $145.00 target price for the company. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price target on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $148.13.

The Hartford Insurance Group Profile

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.