SNS Financial Group LLC Trims Stock Holdings in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

SNS Financial Group LLC decreased its stake in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 11.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,169 shares of the health services provider’s stock after selling 407 shares during the quarter. SNS Financial Group LLC’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $875,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. FMR LLC increased its position in The Cigna Group by 2.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 14,230,397 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $4,929,978,000 after buying an additional 279,880 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in The Cigna Group by 1.2% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 11,054,958 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $3,829,880,000 after buying an additional 130,048 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in The Cigna Group by 0.4% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,855,443 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $2,021,563,000 after buying an additional 22,408 shares in the last quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC increased its position in The Cigna Group by 2.1% in the third quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 2,922,121 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,012,340,000 after buying an additional 59,011 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in shares of The Cigna Group by 2.1% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,168,959 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $751,414,000 after purchasing an additional 44,810 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

The Cigna Group Price Performance

Shares of The Cigna Group stock opened at $297.27 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $82.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.66. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $285.65 and a 200-day moving average price of $319.92. The Cigna Group has a one year low of $262.03 and a one year high of $370.83.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The health services provider reported $6.64 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.84 by ($1.20). The Cigna Group had a return on equity of 18.61% and a net margin of 1.39%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $6.79 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that The Cigna Group will post 29.77 EPS for the current year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be issued a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.03%. This is a boost from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The Cigna Group’s payout ratio is presently 49.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on CI. StockNews.com upgraded The Cigna Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays cut their target price on The Cigna Group from $420.00 to $339.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Stephens cut their target price on The Cigna Group from $410.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Truist Financial cut their target price on The Cigna Group from $390.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on The Cigna Group from $384.00 to $377.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $373.69.

About The Cigna Group

The Cigna Group, together with its subsidiaries, provides insurance and related products and services in the United States. Its Evernorth Health Services segment provides a range of coordinated and point solution health services, including pharmacy benefits, home delivery pharmacy, specialty pharmacy, distribution, and care delivery and management solutions to health plans, employers, government organizations, and health care providers.