The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday morning.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on CI. Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded The Cigna Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $323.00 price target for the company. in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $348.00 target price (down previously from $394.00) on shares of The Cigna Group in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Oppenheimer reduced their price target on The Cigna Group from $400.00 to $375.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price objective on shares of The Cigna Group from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of The Cigna Group from $410.00 to $390.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, The Cigna Group has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $373.25.

The Cigna Group Stock Performance

NYSE:CI opened at $313.06 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $85.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.58, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.51. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $309.30 and its two-hundred day moving average is $311.80. The Cigna Group has a fifty-two week low of $262.03 and a fifty-two week high of $370.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last issued its 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 return on equity of 18.61% and a net margin of 1.39%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $6.79 earnings per share. Analysts expect that The Cigna Group will post 29.77 EPS for the current year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were given a $1.51 dividend. This is a positive change from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.93%. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.35%.

Insider Activity

In other The Cigna Group news, insider Noelle K. Eder sold 9,944 shares of The Cigna Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $320.00, for a total value of $3,182,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,406 shares in the company, valued at $4,289,920. The trade was a 42.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO David Cordani sold 26,527 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.12, for a total value of $8,173,499.24. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 127,767 shares in the company, 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. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 43,751 shares of company stock worth $13,603,991. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new position in shares of The Cigna Group during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Collier Financial acquired a new position in The Cigna Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in The Cigna Group in the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Putney Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA bought a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 86.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.