CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co Has $52.87 Million Stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co reduced its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG - Free Report) by 6.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 483,426 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 33,491 shares during the quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co owned 0.17% of The Hartford Financial Services Group worth $52,867,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,251,389 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $792,796,000 after buying an additional 81,495 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,701,675 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $514,363,000 after acquiring an additional 202,487 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 17.3% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,938,421 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $430,272,000 after acquiring an additional 581,103 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in The Hartford Financial Services Group during the fourth quarter worth $416,340,000. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,448,982 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $377,319,000 after purchasing an additional 25,053 shares in the last quarter. 93.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HIG has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $126.00 to $125.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $125.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Raymond James upped their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, March 31st. StockNews.com raised The Hartford Financial Services Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, The Hartford Financial Services Group has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $124.13.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Price Performance

HIG traded down $0.03 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $118.71. 398,728 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,572,048. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $117.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $115.33. The company has a market cap of $34.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.47, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.68. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $94.47 and a twelve month high of $125.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.32.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.26. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a return on equity of 19.55% and a net margin of 11.72%. Equities research analysts forecast that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.75%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. The Hartford Financial Services Group's dividend payout ratio is 20.10%.

Insider Activity at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In other The Hartford Financial Services Group news, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 13,138 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.20, for a total value of $1,539,773.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,678 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,712,661.60. This trade represents a 29.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Christopher Swift sold 98,061 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.39, for a total value of $11,805,563.79. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 211,082 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,412,161.98. This trade represents a 31.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 112,343 shares of company stock valued at $13,488,337 in the last quarter. Insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

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.