The Hartford 2013 Annual Report Download - page 5

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PART I
Item 1. BUSINESS
(Dollar amounts in millions, except for per share data, unless otherwise stated)
General
The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (together with its subsidiaries, “The Hartford”, the “Company”, “we”, or “our”) is an
insurance and financial services company. The Hartford, headquartered in Connecticut, is among the largest providers of property and
casualty insurance and investment products to both individual and business customers in the United States of America. Also, The
Hartford continues to manage life and annuity products previously sold. Hartford Fire Insurance Company, founded in 1810, is the oldest
of The Hartford’s subsidiaries. At December 31, 2013, total assets and total stockholders’ equity of The Hartford were $277.9 billion and
$18.9 billion, respectively.
Organization
The Hartford strives to maintain and enhance its position as a market leader within the financial services industry. The Company sells
diverse and innovative products through multiple distribution channels to consumers and businesses. The Company seeks on an ongoing
basis to develop and expand its distribution channels, achieving cost efficiencies through economies of scale and improved technology,
and capitalizes on its brand name and The Hartford Stag Logo, one of the most recognized symbols in the financial services industry.
In 2012, The Hartford concluded an evaluation of its strategy and business portfolio. The Company is currently focusing on its Property
& Casualty, Group Benefits and Mutual Fund businesses. The objective of this realignment is to position the organization for higher
returns on equity, reduced sensitivity to capital markets, a lower cost of capital and increased financial flexibility. As a result, the
Company completed sales of its Retirement Plans, Individual Life and U.K. annuity businesses in 2013. In addition, the Company sold
Woodbury Financial Services, Inc. ("Woodbury Financial Services", "WFS") an indirect wholly-owned broker-dealer subsidiary, and
placed its annuity businesses into runoff in 2012. For further discussion of these transactions, see Note 2 - Business Dispositions and
Note 20 - Discontinued Operations of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
As a holding company that is separate and distinct from its subsidiaries, The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. has no significant
business operations of its own. Therefore, it relies on the dividends from its insurance companies and other subsidiaries as the principal
source of cash flow to meet its obligations. Additional information regarding the cash flow and liquidity needs of The Hartford Financial
Services Group, Inc. may be found in the Capital Resources and Liquidity section of Part II, Item 7, Management’s Discussion and
Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations (“MD&A”).
Reporting Segments
The Hartford currently conducts business principally in six reporting segments including Property & Casualty Commercial, Consumer
Markets, Property & Casualty Other Operations, Group Benefits, Mutual Funds and Talcott Resolution as well as a Corporate category.
The Hartford includes in its Corporate category the Company’s debt financing and related interest expense, as well as other capital
raising activities; and purchase accounting adjustments related to goodwill and other expenses not allocated to the reporting segments.
The following discussion describes the principal products and services, marketing and distribution, and competition of The Hartford's
reporting segments. For further discussion on the reporting segments, including financial disclosures of revenues by product line,
geographical revenue, net income (loss), and assets for each reporting segment, see Note 4 - Segment Information of Notes to
Consolidated Financial Statements.