MCF Advisors LLC Has $369,000 Stock Holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

MCF Advisors LLC raised its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 15.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,362 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 457 shares during the quarter. MCF Advisors LLC’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $369,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in HIG. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 437.9% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 871,318 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $95,322,000 after purchasing an additional 709,324 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 31,680.4% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 694,084 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $816,310,000 after buying an additional 691,900 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 17.3% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,938,421 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $430,272,000 after buying an additional 581,103 shares during the period. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec grew its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 42.1% during the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 935,298 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $110,000,000 after buying an additional 277,295 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Verition Fund Management LLC increased its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 7,564.9% during the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 248,648 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $29,243,000 after acquiring an additional 245,404 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.42% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Adin M. Tooker sold 6,865 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.04, for a total transaction of $803,479.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 25,820 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,021,972.80. This trade represents a 21.00 % 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 link. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Price Performance

The Hartford Financial Services Group stock opened at $111.88 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $113.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $112.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.21, a PEG ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.32. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $85.19 and a 52-week high of $124.90.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.86%. This is a boost from The Hartford Financial Services Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.84%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on HIG shares. Barclays raised The Hartford Financial Services Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $130.00 to $135.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $122.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $121.00 to $124.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $134.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $122.28.

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.