Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. Buys New Position in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new position in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 197 shares of the health services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $66,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Boston Trust Walden Corp bought a new stake in The Cigna Group during the fourth quarter worth $212,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in The Cigna Group by 21,324.4% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 285,801 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $85,583,000 after purchasing an additional 284,467 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in The Cigna Group by 10.3% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 4,764 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,426,000 after purchasing an additional 443 shares during the period. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in The Cigna Group by 64.5% during the fourth quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,286 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $984,000 after buying an additional 1,288 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale raised its stake in The Cigna Group by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 199,139 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $59,265,000 after buying an additional 8,328 shares during the period. 86.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Brian C. Evanko sold 4,795 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $345.01, for a total transaction of $1,654,322.95. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 39,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,773,834.23. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other The Cigna Group news, Director Elder Granger sold 547 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $331.38, for a total transaction of $181,264.86. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 5,471 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,812,979.98. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Brian C. Evanko sold 4,795 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $345.01, for a total value of $1,654,322.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 39,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,773,834.23. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 22,988 shares of company stock valued at $7,975,726 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

The Cigna Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CI traded up $5.25 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $334.54. 153,060 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,575,067. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $335.59 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $339.48. The Cigna Group has a twelve month low of $253.95 and a twelve month high of $365.71. The company has a market cap of $95.03 billion, a PE ratio of 27.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.71.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The health services provider reported $6.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.42 by $0.30. The business had revenue of $60.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.30 billion. The Cigna Group had a return on equity of 17.83% and a net margin of 1.70%. The Cigna Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $6.13 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Cigna Group will post 28.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Cigna Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 4th will be given a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 4th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.67%. The Cigna Group’s payout ratio is 45.98%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on CI shares. Oppenheimer increased their price target on The Cigna Group from $370.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $410.00 target price on shares of The Cigna Group in a report on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded The Cigna Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of The Cigna Group from $432.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Robert W. Baird started coverage on shares of The Cigna Group in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $388.00 price target on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $381.00.

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.