MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH Boosts Stock Position in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH raised its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG - Free Report) by 75.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 62,871 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 27,101 shares during the quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH's holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $6,479,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HIG. LPL Financial LLC raised its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 6.8% during the third quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 107,297 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $7,608,000 after acquiring an additional 6,840 shares during the last quarter. Trexquant Investment LP bought a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group during the third quarter worth $2,722,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 117.9% during the third quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 24,875 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,764,000 after acquiring an additional 13,461 shares during the last quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 4.0% during the third quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 60,879 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $4,317,000 after acquiring an additional 2,348 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 23.6% during the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,179,682 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $83,651,000 after acquiring an additional 224,979 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.42% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In related news, EVP Jonathan R. Bennett sold 18,335 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.78, for a total transaction of $1,847,801.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 25,643 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,584,301.54. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Michael R. Fisher sold 4,088 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.47, for a total transaction of $414,809.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,818 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,503,582.46. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jonathan R. Bennett sold 18,335 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.78, for a total value of $1,847,801.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 25,643 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,584,301.54. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 94,499 shares of company stock valued at $9,449,309 over the last three months. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of HIG stock traded up $0.16 on Tuesday, hitting $100.05. 1,692,883 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,701,275. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.93. The business has a 50-day moving average of $100.65 and a 200 day moving average of $94.77. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $68.82 and a fifty-two week high of $105.20.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The insurance provider reported $2.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.43 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $6.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.51 billion. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a return on equity of 20.64% and a net margin of 10.87%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.68 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 9.91 EPS for the current year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.47 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 3rd. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.88%. The Hartford Financial Services Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 21.36%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on HIG. Argus boosted their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $104.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, June 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $114.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $110.00 to $109.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a report on Friday. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $106.71.

About The Hartford Financial Services Group

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.