LPL Financial LLC Raises Stake in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

LPL Financial LLC lifted its position in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 15.7% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 181,438 shares of the health services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 24,578 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $50,102,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Samalin Investment Counsel LLC raised its stake in The Cigna Group by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Samalin Investment Counsel LLC now owns 1,753 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $484,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the period. English Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of The Cigna Group by 6.2% during the fourth quarter. English Capital Management LLC now owns 20,586 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $5,685,000 after buying an additional 1,202 shares during the last quarter. Focused Investors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 8.8% in the fourth quarter. Focused Investors LLC now owns 587,450 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $162,218,000 after buying an additional 47,550 shares in the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in shares of The Cigna Group in the fourth quarter worth $51,589,000. Finally, AXQ Capital LP bought a new position in shares of The Cigna Group during the fourth quarter worth $422,000. 86.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

The Cigna Group Price Performance

The Cigna Group stock opened at $324.74 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $88.88 billion, a PE ratio of 26.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.53. The Cigna Group has a 12-month low of $262.03 and a 12-month high of $370.83. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $303.86 and a 200-day moving average price of $314.31. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The health services provider reported $6.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the prior year, the company posted $6.79 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Cigna Group will post 29.77 EPS for the current year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were paid a $1.51 dividend. This is a positive change from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.86%. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CI has been the topic of a number of research reports. Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $360.00 price target (down from $415.00) on shares of The Cigna Group in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on The Cigna Group from $370.00 to $341.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. UBS Group dropped their price target on The Cigna Group from $410.00 to $390.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada set a $355.00 price objective on The Cigna Group in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Truist Financial lowered 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, The Cigna Group presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $373.25.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Nicole S. Jones sold 4,904 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.12, for a total transaction of $1,511,020.48. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 29,421 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,065,198.52. This trade represents a 14.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Elder Granger sold 2,376 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.35, for a total value of $737,391.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 5,471 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,697,924.85. The trade was a 30.28 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 43,751 shares of company stock worth $13,603,991 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

The Cigna Group Profile

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.