Machina Capital S.A.S. Invests $220,000 in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Machina Capital S.A.S. bought a new position in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 2,013 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $220,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,701,675 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $514,363,000 after buying 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% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,938,421 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $430,272,000 after buying an additional 581,103 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,913,914 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $209,382,000 after buying an additional 39,585 shares during the last quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. grew its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 8.5% in the 4th quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 1,457,147 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $159,412,000 after buying an additional 114,716 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 1,234,480 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $135,052,000 after buying an additional 34,938 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $100.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $125.00 price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $139.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. StockNews.com downgraded The Hartford Financial Services Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Barclays upgraded The Hartford Financial Services Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $130.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $122.94.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Stock Performance

HIG stock opened at $117.92 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $33.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.91. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $94.47 and a 1 year high of $124.90. 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 stock’s fifty day moving average price is $112.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $114.76.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.94 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. On average, equities analysts forecast 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 business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.76%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.10%.

The Hartford Financial Services Group 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.