Paradigm Financial Partners LLC Reduces Holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

Paradigm Financial Partners LLC lowered its holdings in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 37.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 19,472 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 11,474 shares during the period. Paradigm Financial Partners LLC’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $1,565,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GoalVest Advisory LLC boosted its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 464.8% during the 4th quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 305 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 251 shares during the period. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. CVA Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Selway Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group in the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other The Hartford Financial Services Group news, EVP Michael R. Fisher sold 27,004 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.90, for a total transaction of $2,670,695.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 18,906 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,869,803.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Michael R. Fisher sold 27,004 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.90, for a total value of $2,670,695.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 18,906 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,869,803.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Allison G. Niderno sold 1,332 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.74, for a total transaction of $119,533.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,536.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 106,501 shares of company stock valued at $10,141,126 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $110.00 to $109.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $109.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $96.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $92.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $106.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $105.81.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Trading Down 3.8 %

NYSE HIG traded down $3.79 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $95.30. 2,889,683 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,622,156. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $67.05 and a 1-year high of $103.64. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $98.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $86.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.33 billion, a PE ratio of 10.83, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.32.

The Hartford Financial Services Group (NYSE:HIG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The insurance provider reported $2.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.43 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $6.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.51 billion. The Hartford Financial Services Group had a return on equity of 21.04% and a net margin of 10.87%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.68 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 10.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 4th were paid a dividend of $0.47 per share. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 1st. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.36%.

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.