Moody’s upgrades The Hartford ratings and assigns stable outlook

Moody’s Ratings has upgraded The Hartford Insurance Group’s senior unsecured debt rating to A3 from Baa1, and changed the Group’s and its subsidiaries’ outlook to stable from positive.

Additionally, the credit rating agency upgraded the insurance financial strength (IFS) ratings of Hartford’s primary property & casualty (P&C) insurance subsidiaries to Aa3 from A1, and affirmed the IFS rating of Hartford Life & Accident Insurance Company (HLA) at A1.

According to Moody’s the rating upgrades reflect The Hartford’s consistent track record of strong and stable profitability, as well as its robust risk-adjusted capitalization.

The ratings agency also highlighted the company’s well-diversified revenue and earnings streams from its P&C insurance group benefits, and mutual funds businesses.

The Hartford maintains a strong market presence, particularly in small- to medium-sized risks, and specialty and personal lines as well as its top tier position in the group life and disability market.

Moody’s noted the company’s good underwriting results and prudent financial management. The group’s exposure to pricing partly offset these strengths, alongside its reserving risk with a meaningful concentration in long tail casualty lines including workers’ compensation, moderate exposure to catastrophes, and heightened competition in the employee benefits business.

According to Moody’s, The Hartford’s P&C insurance group is among the top 15 US P&C insurers, benefiting from strong product and geographic diversification across its Business Insurance and Personal Insurance segments.

The Business Insurance segment, which includes Small Business, Middle and Large Business, and Global Specialty, has shown strong profitability in recent years.

In Personal Insurance, The Hartford’s direct distribution partnership with AARP, one of the largest affinity groups in the US, provides a significant competitive advantage.

Moody’s also pointed to The Hartford P&C’s multichannel distribution strategy, efficient technology and economies of scale enhance its competitive advantage.

Hartford P&C continues to invest in product and underwriting capabilities using data, analytics, and artificial intelligence to better match risk to price and streamline claims operations.

For the first half of 2025, The Hartford reported net income available to common shareholders of $1.6 billion, up from $1.5 billion for the prior year period, primarily driven by higher net investment income.

The combined ratio for the P&C segment remained strong, declining to 92.7% for 1H 2025 from 93.2% in the prior period driven by lower loss and loss adjustment expenses and underwriting expenses.