Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI Increases Stock Holdings in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI grew its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 3.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,945 shares of the health services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 334 shares during the quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $2,470,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Swedbank AB increased its holdings in The Cigna Group by 26.6% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 570,283 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $197,569,000 after buying an additional 119,681 shares during the last quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of The Cigna Group by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,497 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $866,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Sigma Planning Corp grew its position in shares of The Cigna Group by 44.5% during the 3rd quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 3,089 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $1,070,000 after acquiring an additional 952 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group in the 3rd quarter worth $563,000. Finally, Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV raised its holdings in The Cigna Group by 8.3% in the 3rd quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 3,210 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,112,000 after purchasing an additional 247 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

The Cigna Group Trading Down 2.9 %

Shares of CI stock opened at $317.24 on Wednesday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $86.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.92, 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 stock’s 50-day moving average price is $294.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $317.14.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The health services provider reported $6.64 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.84 by ($1.20). The Cigna Group had a net margin of 1.39% and a return on equity of 18.61%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $6.79 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that The Cigna Group will post 29.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be paid a dividend of $1.51 per share. This is an increase from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.90%. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling at The Cigna Group

In other The Cigna Group news, insider Nicole S. Jones sold 4,904 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.12, for a total transaction of $1,511,020.48. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 29,421 shares in the company, valued at $9,065,198.52. This represents a 14.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO David Cordani sold 26,527 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 value of $8,173,499.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 127,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $39,367,568.04. The trade was a 17.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 41,375 shares of company stock worth $12,866,600 over the last 90 days. 0.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on CI shares. Stephens cut their price target on The Cigna Group from $410.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $360.00 price objective (down from $415.00) on shares of The Cigna Group in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer decreased their target price on shares of The Cigna Group from $400.00 to $375.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $348.00 price target (down from $394.00) on shares of The Cigna Group in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $372.31.

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.