Hartford Financial downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citi

Citi analyst Michael Ward downgraded Hartford Financial to Neutral from Buy with a price target of $114, down from $116. The analyst is “incrementally cautious” on workers’ comp and expects medical inflation to begin to more negatively impact margins over the near-to-intermediate term. Workers’ comp has been a consistent source of reserve releases in recent years, and the product line has been overshadowed by social inflation and casualty conversations, the analyst tells investors in a research note. As a result, Citi says the risk/reward in U.S. insurance is “more negatively skewed than we thought.” It ranked commercial lines as its least preferred subsector.