Sapient Capital LLC Buys New Position in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new position in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 950 shares of the health services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $284,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its position in shares of The Cigna Group by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 135,998 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $38,679,000 after acquiring an additional 5,863 shares during the period. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC lifted its position in The Cigna Group by 20.5% in the third quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC now owns 954 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $273,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares during the period. Strs Ohio boosted its stake in The Cigna Group by 10.2% during the third quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 165,171 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $47,250,000 after buying an additional 15,294 shares in the last quarter. NBT Bank N A NY increased its holdings in The Cigna Group by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. NBT Bank N A NY now owns 1,315 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $376,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the period. Finally, Advisor Partners II LLC raised its stake in shares of The Cigna Group by 13.5% in the 3rd quarter. Advisor Partners II LLC now owns 16,616 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $4,753,000 after buying an additional 1,971 shares in the last quarter. 86.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Hoeltzel Mary T. Agoglia sold 4,867 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $694,668.96. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO David Cordani sold 38,065 shares of The Cigna Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.22, for a total transaction of $12,760,149.30. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 329,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $110,394,985.62. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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 transaction 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 114,144 shares of company stock valued at $39,296,330 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on CI. Mizuho upped 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 note on Monday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on The Cigna Group from $334.00 to $348.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Barclays began coverage on The Cigna Group in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $393.00 price target on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price objective on The Cigna Group from $384.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $392.00 price objective (up from $382.00) on shares of The Cigna Group in a report on Monday, March 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $366.14.

The Cigna Group Price Performance

Shares of CI stock opened at $342.41 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $97.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.11, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.57. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $350.77 and its 200-day moving average is $319.93. 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The health services provider reported $6.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.17 by $0.30. The firm had revenue of $57.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $56.59 billion. The Cigna Group had a return on equity of 17.24% and a net margin of 1.76%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $5.41 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that The Cigna Group will post 28.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Cigna Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 4th will be given a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 4th. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio is 45.98%.

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.