DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. (HIG) will get $3.4
billion in government funding as part of the Treasury Department's
Troubled Asset Relief Program.
The company had been made eligible for that amount and was one
of the most enthusiastic after the government last month decided to
allow six major insurers to tap into TARP for additional
capital.
The company earlier this month also announced it would sell up
to $750 million in stock and use the proceeds for general corporate
purposes, including the possible repayment of debt.
Chairman and Chief Executive Ramani Ayer, who recently announced
he will retire by year's end, said the TARP investment boosts the
company's financial flexibility and its capacity to weather
"significant deterioration" in the stock and debt markets.
In addition to the preferred stock the Treasury Department gets
for the investment, it will also get warrants to buy common stock
equal to 15% of the preferred investment, or $510 million, at $9.79
a share.
Hartford's shares were recently down 0.1% at $12.09. The stock
is off 18% in the last month and 82% in the last year.
-By Kerry E. Grace, Dow Jones Newswires; 201-938-5089;
kerry.grace@dowjones.com