Is HIG a Buy? What to Consider in 2026

Last updated July 2026

Short answer

The bull case for The Hartford Insurance Group (HIG) rests on Business Insurance underwriting profitability: Business Insurance is The Hartford's largest and most important profit engine, and it has been running a very strong underlying combined ratio (around 88.5% for full-year 2025), meaning it earns healthy underwriting margins before investment income. Revenue (FY2025) is ~$28.4B. If you believe that thesis holds, the real questions become position sizing and overlap, not timing. The main risk to that view: As an insurer, The Hartford is exposed to catastrophe losses from hurricanes, wildfires, severe storms and other events, which can swing quarterly results sharply. Whether HIG is a buy comes down to whether you believe the thesis. This is informational, not a recommendation, and Walnut is not an investment adviser.

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE: HIG) is a roughly 215-year-old US insurer that sells commercial property-casualty coverage to businesses, personal auto and home policies to individuals, and group life, disability and voluntary benefits to employers, and it also runs the Hartford Funds asset-management business. The company reports across five segments: Business Insurance (its largest and most profitable), Personal Insurance, Property & Casualty Other Operations (legacy run-off, including asbestos and environmental exposures), Employee Benefits, and Hartford Funds. The parent formally changed its corporate name from The Hartford Financial Services Group to The Hartford Insurance Group effective February 2025, keeping the HIG ticker, and renamed its main segments (Commercial Lines to Business Insurance, Personal Lines to Personal Insurance, Group Benefits to Employee Benefits). The investment picture is that of a disciplined, mature underwriter throwing off strong and growing earnings. For full-year 2025 The Hartford reported net income available to common stockholders of about $3.8 billion (roughly $13.32 per diluted share), up about 23% year over year, on revenue of around $28.4 billion, with a net income return on equity near 22% and core-earnings ROE around 19.4%. Business Insurance underwriting stayed very profitable (full-year underlying combined ratio around 88.5%), and the company returned roughly $2.2 billion to shareholders through buybacks and dividends. At a mid-2026 share price near $140 and a trailing P/E in the high single digits, HIG is valued modestly relative to the broader market, reflecting insurance's cyclicality and catastrophe risk.

What's the case for buying HIG?

1. Business Insurance underwriting profitability

Business Insurance is The Hartford's largest and most important profit engine, and it has been running a very strong underlying combined ratio (around 88.5% for full-year 2025), meaning it earns healthy underwriting margins before investment income. Continued rate adequacy in small and middle-market commercial lines is the primary driver of earnings. Sustaining pricing above loss-cost trend is what keeps this segment compounding.

2. Rising investment income

Like all insurers, The Hartford invests the premiums it holds (its float) in bonds and other assets, so higher market interest rates lift the yield on its large fixed-income portfolio. As older, lower-yielding bonds mature and are reinvested at higher rates, net investment income can grow even without underwriting changes. This provides a second, more stable earnings stream alongside underwriting.

3. Employee Benefits and Hartford Funds

The Employee Benefits segment (group life, disability and voluntary benefits) and the Hartford Funds asset-management arm diversify earnings away from pure property-casualty risk. Employee Benefits margins have been solid, and Hartford Funds generates fee income tied to assets under management. These lines add stability and are less exposed to catastrophe volatility than the P&C book.

4. Capital return and consistent dividends

The Hartford has a long record of returning capital, buying back roughly $1.6 billion of stock and paying nearly $0.6 billion in common dividends in 2025 (about $2.2 billion total). It has raised its dividend for well over a decade and runs a conservative payout ratio, leaving room for both buybacks and dividend growth. This shareholder-return discipline is central to the total-return case.

What are the risks to HIG?

As an insurer, The Hartford is exposed to catastrophe losses from hurricanes, wildfires, severe storms and other events, which can swing quarterly results sharply. Property-casualty insurance is cyclical: pricing softens when the industry is flush with capital, which can pressure margins and growth. Reserve adequacy is a persistent risk, including legacy asbestos and environmental exposures in Property & Casualty Other Operations, where adverse development could require charges. Social inflation and rising litigation costs can push claims above expectations, and the large investment portfolio carries credit and interest-rate risk. Personal auto and home lines have at times faced loss-cost inflation that lagged pricing.

How is HIG valued? (as of July 2026)

Price

$134.50

Market cap

$36.87B

P/E (TTM)

9.46

Forward P/E

9.70

Price / book

1.99

Beta

0.47

52-week range

$119.61 to $144.50

Snapshot for HIG as of July 2026, sourced from Yahoo Finance and may be delayed. Valuation figures move with price and earnings; verify the current numbers with your broker before deciding.

Revenue (FY2025): ~$28.4B
Net income to common (FY2025): ~$3.8B
Diluted EPS (FY2025): ~$13.32
Core earnings ROE (FY2025): ~19.4%
Market cap: ~$38B
Trailing P/E: ~9-10x
Dividend yield: ~1.7%

At a mid-2026 share price near $140 and a market cap around $38 billion, HIG trades at a trailing P/E in the high single digits, a discount to the broad market that is typical for a mature, catastrophe-exposed insurer. The valuation reflects strong but cyclical earnings, with a return on equity near 20% and a conservative payout ratio supporting both the roughly 1.7% dividend and ongoing buybacks. These figures are approximate and change with markets and quarterly reporting.

How do you decide if HIG is a buy?

Rather than asking whether HIG is a buy in the abstract, it tends to help to answer four questions:

Thesis: do you believe the case above, and is it still true today?
Time horizon: a single stock can be volatile, so a longer horizon absorbs more of the swings.
Position sizing: a thesis can be right and the sizing still wrong; decide how much of your portfolio one name should be.
Overlap: check whether you already hold HIG indirectly through an index or sector ETF before adding more.

For the full picture, see the HIG stock guide (what the company does, the ETFs that hold it, similar stocks, and the themes it fits). In Walnut you can ask its AI about HIG against your real portfolio and see your actual exposure before deciding.

The bottom line on HIG

The bottom line: The Hartford Insurance Group's story right now is Business Insurance underwriting profitability, with revenue (fy2025) at ~$28.4B. If you believe that narrative continues, the call is about sizing HIG sensibly and checking overlap with what you own; if you doubt it (the risk: as an insurer, The Hartford is exposed to catastrophe losses from hurricanes, wildfires, severe storms and other events, which can swing quarterly results sharply.), it is not for you. Decide from the thesis, not the ticker. Walnut is not an investment adviser.

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FAQ

Is HIG a good stock to buy right now?

The case for The Hartford Insurance Group right now is Business Insurance underwriting profitability, with revenue (fy2025) at ~$28.4B. If you believe that thesis holds, HIG is a way to own it and the real questions are sizing and overlap, not timing; the main risk to that view is as an insurer, The Hartford is exposed to catastrophe losses from hurricanes, wildfires, severe storms and other events, which can swing quarterly results sharply. So it comes down to whether you believe the thesis. Walnut is not an investment adviser and this is not a recommendation.

What does The Hartford Insurance Group do?

The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE: HIG) is a roughly 215-year-old US insurer that sells commercial property-casualty coverage to businesses, personal auto and home policies to ind

What are the main risks of HIG?

What does The Hartford (HIG) do?

The Hartford is a US insurance company that sells commercial property-casualty coverage to businesses, personal auto and home policies to individuals, and group life, disability and voluntary benefits to employers. It also runs the Hartford Funds asset-management business.

Did Hartford Financial Services change its name?

Yes. Effective February 2025 the parent company changed its corporate name from The Hartford Financial Services Group to The Hartford Insurance Group, keeping the NYSE ticker HIG. It also renamed segments, so Commercial Lines became Business Insurance, Personal Lines became Personal Insurance, and Group Benefits became Employee Benefits.

How did The Hartford perform financially in 2025?

For full-year 2025 The Hartford reported net income available to common stockholders of about $3.8 billion (roughly $13.32 per diluted share), up about 23% year over year, on revenue near $28.4 billion. Net income return on equity was around 22% and core-earnings ROE about 19.4%.

What are The Hartford's business segments?

It reports across five segments: Business Insurance (its largest and most profitable), Personal Insurance, Property & Casualty Other Operations (legacy run-off business), Employee Benefits, and Hartford Funds. A Corporate category covers items outside the operating segments.

Walnut is informational and is not an investment adviser. This page is educational and not a recommendation to buy or sell HIG; figures are approximate and dated, and your own situation, time horizon, and risk tolerance should drive any decision. Verify current data before investing.