Distillate Capital Partners LLC Has $33.93 Million Stake in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Distillate Capital Partners LLC lessened its position in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI - Free Report) by 38.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 122,863 shares of the health services provider's stock after selling 77,131 shares during the period. The Cigna Group makes up 1.7% of Distillate Capital Partners LLC's holdings, making the stock its 8th largest position. Distillate Capital Partners LLC's holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $33,927,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. NFP Retirement Inc. bought a new position in shares of The Cigna Group in the fourth quarter valued at $312,000. Coign Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group during the fourth quarter worth $527,000. Heritage Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group during the fourth quarter valued at $949,000. Family Office Research LLC acquired a new position in shares of The Cigna Group in the 4th quarter valued at $301,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its stake in The Cigna Group by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 865 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $239,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.99% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at The Cigna Group

In other news, Director Elder Granger sold 2,376 shares of The Cigna Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.35, for a total transaction of $737,391.60. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 5,471 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,697,924.85. The trade was a 30.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Nicole S. Jones sold 4,904 shares of the company'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 $1,511,020.48. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 29,421 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,065,198.52. This represents a 14.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 43,751 shares of company stock worth $13,603,991. Company insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

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Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of The Cigna Group from $388.00 to $362.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of The Cigna Group from $403.00 to $379.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note 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 report on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada set a $355.00 target price on The Cigna Group in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded The Cigna Group from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $373.56.

The Cigna Group Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of The Cigna Group stock traded up $0.87 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $329.50. 1,311,497 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,687,298. 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 has a 52 week low of $262.03 and a 52 week high of $370.83. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $313.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $311.06. The company has a market cap of $90.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.51.

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 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 prior year, the business earned $6.79 EPS. Equities analysts expect that The Cigna Group will post 29.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th were paid a $1.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. This is a positive change from The Cigna Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.83%. The Cigna Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.