Wells Fargo & Company MN Sells 41,482 Shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Wells Fargo & Company MN trimmed its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG - Free Report) by 7.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 508,463 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 41,482 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN owned about 0.18% of The Hartford Financial Services Group worth $55,626,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Integrated Quantitative Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $418,000. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $6,257,000. Westpac Banking Corp raised its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 42.5% in the fourth quarter. Westpac Banking Corp now owns 39,678 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $4,341,000 after buying an additional 11,836 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank grew its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 10,621 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,162,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,448,982 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $377,319,000 after acquiring an additional 25,053 shares during the last quarter. 93.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other The Hartford Financial Services Group news, CEO Christopher Swift sold 1,144 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.00, for a total value of $143,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 211,082 shares in the company, valued at $26,385,250. The trade was a 0.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Robert W. Paiano sold 13,138 shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.20, for a total transaction of $1,539,773.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,678 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,712,661.60. The trade was a 29.32 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 112,343 shares of company stock valued at $13,488,337. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on HIG shares. StockNews.com cut shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $118.00 to $117.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $125.00 target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $126.00 to $125.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $140.00 to $133.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, The Hartford Financial Services Group has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $124.13.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Up 1.7 %

The Hartford Financial Services Group stock traded up $2.03 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $118.08. The company's stock had a trading volume of 118,195 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,582,050. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $116.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $115.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.32. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $94.47 and a 12 month high of $125.08. The company has a market capitalization of $33.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.68.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.94 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.76%. The Hartford Financial Services Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 20.10%.

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.