The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) Price Target Cut to $107.00

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) had its price target lowered by stock analysts at Morgan Stanley from $109.00 to $107.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “equal weight” rating on the insurance provider’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price objective points to a potential upside of 5.59% from the company’s previous close.

HIG has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $117.00 to $111.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $120.00 target price (up previously from $100.00) on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research note on Monday, April 1st. TD Cowen raised their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group to $144.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $114.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $105.00 target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $107.50.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of HIG stock opened at $101.34 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company has a 50 day moving average of $100.96 and a 200-day moving average of $95.67. The Hartford Financial Services Group has a 12-month low of $68.82 and a 12-month high of $105.20. The firm has a market cap of $29.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.52, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.93.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The insurance provider reported $2.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.43 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $6.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.51 billion. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a net margin of 10.87% and a return on equity of 20.64%. The company’s revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.68 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Hartford Financial Services Group will post 9.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at The Hartford Financial Services Group

In other news, EVP Jonathan R. Bennett sold 18,335 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The stock was 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 owns 25,643 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,584,301.54. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, EVP Jonathan R. Bennett sold 18,335 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The stock was 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 owns 25,643 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,584,301.54. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Beth Ann Costello sold 72,076 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.71, for a total value of $7,186,697.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 69,169 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,896,840.99. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 94,499 shares of company stock valued at $9,449,309 over the last quarter. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of The Hartford Financial Services Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 27.1% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 456,799 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $47,073,000 after purchasing an additional 97,465 shares during the period. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise boosted its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 378.8% in the 1st quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 16,725 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,724,000 after purchasing an additional 13,232 shares during the period. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 11.7% in the 4th quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,165 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $254,000 after purchasing an additional 331 shares during the period. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in The Hartford Financial Services Group during the fourth quarter worth $2,875,000. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 14.2% during the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 261,995 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $21,059,000 after acquiring an additional 32,534 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

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.