Mackenzie Financial Corp Buys 11,416 Shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its stake in shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 8.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 147,414 shares of the health services provider’s stock after buying an additional 11,416 shares during the quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $44,143,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bogart Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of The Cigna Group by 104.5% during the third quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 90 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the period. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in The Cigna Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new stake in The Cigna Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in The Cigna Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Optimum Investment Advisors boosted its stake in The Cigna Group by 110.0% in the third quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 105 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. 86.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

The Cigna Group Stock Down 0.6 %

CI stock opened at $346.79 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $101.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.56. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $347.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $314.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The Cigna Group has a 52 week low of $240.50 and a 52 week high of $365.71.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 2nd. The health services provider reported $6.79 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.54 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $51.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $48.91 billion. The Cigna Group had a net margin of 2.64% and a return on equity of 13.59%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $4.96 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that The Cigna Group will post 28.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 21st. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 6th were paid a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 5th. This is a boost from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.23. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.20%.

Insider Activity at The Cigna Group

In related news, insider Eric P. Palmer sold 1,017 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.26, for a total transaction of $340,959.42. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 45,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,275,786.64. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other The Cigna Group news, SVP Hoeltzel Mary T. Agoglia sold 4,867 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $330.48, for a total value of $1,608,446.16. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,102 shares in the company, valued at approximately $694,668.96. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Eric P. Palmer sold 1,017 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.26, for a total transaction of $340,959.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 45,564 shares in the company, valued at $15,275,786.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 114,144 shares of company stock valued at $39,296,330. Corporate insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CI has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $392.00 target price (up from $382.00) on shares of The Cigna Group in a research note on Monday, March 4th. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of The Cigna Group from $360.00 to $370.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of The Cigna Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $355.00 to $370.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of The Cigna Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $330.00 to $372.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of The Cigna Group from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $327.00 to $354.00 in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $362.14.

The Cigna Group Company 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.