Advisory Services Network LLC Purchases 816 Shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Advisory Services Network LLC increased its stake in shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI - Free Report) by 22.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,420 shares of the health services provider's stock after buying an additional 816 shares during the quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC's holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $1,220,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Sterling Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in The Cigna Group in the fourth quarter worth $4,367,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in The Cigna Group by 3.6% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 323,911 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $112,216,000 after buying an additional 11,228 shares during the period. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. raised its position in The Cigna Group by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 75,837 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $20,942,000 after acquiring an additional 858 shares during the period. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. grew its position in shares of The Cigna Group by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 56,933 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $15,721,000 after acquiring an additional 1,548 shares during the period. Finally, Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co lifted its stake in The Cigna Group by 28.3% in the third quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 15,713 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $5,444,000 after purchasing an additional 3,466 shares during the last quarter. 86.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays dropped their price target on The Cigna Group from $420.00 to $339.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of The Cigna Group from $370.00 to $341.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of The Cigna Group from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on The Cigna Group from $375.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Raymond James restated a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $360.00 target price (down previously from $415.00) on shares of The Cigna Group in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $373.56.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Noelle K. Eder sold 9,944 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $320.00, for a total value of $3,182,080.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,406 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,289,920. This represents a 42.59 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO David Cordani sold 26,527 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.12, for a total transaction of $8,173,499.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 127,767 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,367,568.04. This trade represents a 17.19 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 43,751 shares of company stock valued at $13,603,991. Corporate insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

The Cigna Group Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of CI stock traded up $0.53 on Friday, hitting $329.97. 2,847,268 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,692,510. The stock has a market capitalization of $90.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.96, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.51. The Cigna Group has a one year low of $262.03 and a one year high of $370.83. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $315.18 and its 200 day simple moving average is $311.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.66.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The health services provider reported $6.64 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.79 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that The Cigna Group will post 29.77 EPS for the current year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The business 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 represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.83%. This is a boost from The Cigna Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. The Cigna Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.35%.

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.