OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC Lowers Stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG)

OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC cut its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:HIG) by 2.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,060 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 263 shares during the quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in The Hartford Financial Services Group were worth $1,536,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 1.2% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,809,358 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $584,177,000 after purchasing an additional 69,007 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 4.9% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,497,960 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $150,605,000 after buying an additional 70,018 shares during the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. raised its stake in shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 1,367,400 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $137,478,000 after acquiring an additional 31,806 shares in the last quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. lifted its position in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 3.4% during the second quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 1,229,133 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $123,577,000 after acquiring an additional 40,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its stake in The Hartford Financial Services Group by 22.7% in the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 1,199,542 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $141,078,000 after acquiring an additional 221,778 shares in the last quarter. 93.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on HIG. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $113.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. UBS Group raised their price target on The Hartford Financial Services Group from $134.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $121.00 to $124.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of The Hartford Financial Services Group from $133.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, The Hartford Financial Services Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $120.88.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Trading Up 1.3 %

The Hartford Financial Services Group stock opened at $117.95 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $34.19 billion, a PE ratio of 11.82, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.94. The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $75.36 and a 12 month high of $123.23. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $116.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $108.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

The Hartford Financial Services Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $0.52 dividend. This is a boost from The Hartford Financial Services Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.76%. The Hartford Financial Services Group’s payout ratio is presently 18.84%.

The Hartford Financial Services Group declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, July 25th that allows the company to repurchase $3.30 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the insurance provider to reacquire up to 10.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.