The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) Lifted 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 Friday morning.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on CI. Oppenheimer raised their price target on The Cigna Group from $370.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Robert W. Baird assumed 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 for the company. Baird R W raised shares of The Cigna Group to a strong-buy rating in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an overweight rating and set a $400.00 price objective on shares of The Cigna Group in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler initiated coverage on The Cigna Group in a research note on Wednesday, June 26th. They issued an overweight rating and a $400.00 target price on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Buy and an average target price of $376.20.

The Cigna Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CI opened at $334.79 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.71. The Cigna Group has a fifty-two week low of $253.95 and a fifty-two week high of $365.71. The stock has a market cap of $95.10 billion, a PE ratio of 27.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.52. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $336.20 and a 200-day moving average of $335.57.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The health services provider reported $6.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.17 by $0.30. The Cigna Group had a return on equity of 17.24% and a net margin of 1.76%. The business had revenue of $57.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $56.59 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $5.41 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 23.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that The Cigna Group will post 28.47 earnings per share for the current year.

The Cigna Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 4th were issued a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 4th. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio is 45.98%.

Insider Activity at The Cigna Group

In other news, insider Noelle K. Eder sold 10,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $348.47, for a total transaction of $3,728,629.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,824 shares in the company, valued at $5,514,189.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, insider Noelle K. Eder sold 10,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $348.47, for a total transaction of $3,728,629.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 15,824 shares in the company, valued at $5,514,189.28. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Hoeltzel Mary T. Agoglia sold 5,946 shares of The Cigna Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $348.71, for a total transaction of $2,073,429.66. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 2,595 shares in the company, valued at approximately $904,902.45. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 22,988 shares of company stock worth $7,975,726 in the last three months. 0.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On The Cigna Group

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Silicon Valley Capital Partners boosted its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Silicon Valley Capital Partners now owns 70 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in The Cigna Group in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Cedar Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of The Cigna Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in shares of The Cigna Group by 112.2% in the 3rd quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 104 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of The Cigna Group by 69.5% in the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 100 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. 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.