Panagora Asset Management Inc. Buys 456,478 Shares of The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. $HIG

Panagora Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 43.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,518,322 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 456,478 shares during the period. The Hartford Insurance Group comprises 0.7% of Panagora Asset Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Panagora Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in The Hartford Insurance Group were worth $209,225,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in HIG. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its holdings in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 286,241.4% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 73,861,771 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $10,178,152,000 after purchasing an additional 73,835,976 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $611,724,000. Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its holdings in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 131.1% during the fourth quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 1,632,082 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $224,901,000 after purchasing an additional 925,789 shares during the period. Danske Bank A S bought a new position in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group during the third quarter worth approximately $91,398,000. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its holdings in shares of The Hartford Insurance Group by 6,431.8% during the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 643,443 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $85,829,000 after purchasing an additional 633,592 shares during the period. 93.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on HIG shares. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $165.00 to $154.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $159.00 to $154.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 5th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $157.00 to $155.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald cut their target price on shares of The Hartford Insurance Group from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $147.31.

The Hartford Insurance Group Stock Performance

Shares of The Hartford Insurance Group stock opened at $129.49 on Monday. The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $119.61 and a fifty-two week high of $144.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.47. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $134.34 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $135.66.

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The insurance provider reported $3.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.39 by ($0.30). The Hartford Insurance Group had a net margin of 14.10% and a return on equity of 22.52%. The company had revenue of $7.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.41 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.20 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that The Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. The Hartford Insurance Group’s payout ratio is 16.87%.

Insider Activity at The Hartford Insurance Group

In other news, President Adin M. Tooker sold 8,895 shares of The Hartford Insurance Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.13, for a total transaction of $1,201,981.35. Following the transaction, the president owned 38,208 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,163,047.04. The trade was a 18.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

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.