Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc. Raises Stock Position in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc. raised its holdings in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 27.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,522 shares of the health services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 325 shares during the quarter. Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc.’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $456,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Royal Fund Management LLC grew its stake in shares of The Cigna Group by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Royal Fund Management LLC now owns 4,009 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,147,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the period. Howland Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Cigna Group by 6.9% during the 3rd quarter. Howland Capital Management LLC now owns 1,556 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $445,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of The Cigna Group by 617.2% in the 3rd quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,488 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $2,142,000 after purchasing an additional 6,444 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC boosted its position in The Cigna Group by 4.8% during the third quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 784 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $224,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caprock Group LLC grew its holdings in The Cigna Group by 10.8% in the third quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 6,827 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $1,953,000 after purchasing an additional 667 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

The Cigna Group Stock Down 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE:CI traded down $0.10 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $352.55. The stock had a trading volume of 440,403 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,579,475. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.67. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $349.03 and its 200-day moving average is $316.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $103.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.56. The Cigna Group has a 1 year low of $240.50 and a 1 year high of $365.71.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 2nd. The health services provider reported $6.79 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.54 by $0.25. The Cigna Group had a net margin of 2.64% and a return on equity of 13.59%. The company had revenue of $51.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $48.91 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $4.96 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that The Cigna Group will post 28.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 21st. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 6th were issued a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 5th. This is an increase from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.23. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.59%. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.20%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on CI. Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of The Cigna Group from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $327.00 to $354.00 in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of The Cigna Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $330.00 to $372.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on The Cigna Group from $334.00 to $348.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $392.00 target price (up previously from $382.00) on shares of The Cigna Group in a report on Monday, March 4th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $384.00 price target on shares of The Cigna Group in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $362.14.

Insider Activity at The Cigna Group

In other news, SVP Hoeltzel Mary T. Agoglia sold 4,867 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $330.48, for a total value of $1,608,446.16. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $694,668.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other The Cigna Group 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 value of $340,959.42. Following the sale, the insider now owns 45,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,275,786.64. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Hoeltzel Mary T. Agoglia sold 4,867 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,102 shares in the company, valued at approximately $694,668.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 114,144 shares of company stock worth $39,296,330 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

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.