Franklin Resources Inc. Purchases 286,515 Shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 10.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,927,223 shares of the health services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 286,515 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 1.05% of The Cigna Group worth $808,323,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Family Legacy Inc. increased its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Family Legacy Inc. now owns 6,466 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $1,806,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Colrain Capital LLC bought a new position in The Cigna Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,278,000. Summit Financial LLC boosted its stake in The Cigna Group by 36.9% during the 4th quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 2,104 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $581,000 after purchasing an additional 567 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in The Cigna Group by 11.1% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 16,869 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $4,658,000 after purchasing an additional 1,689 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of The Cigna Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $730,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

The Cigna Group Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of CI opened at $324.97 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $304.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $313.47. The Cigna Group has a twelve month low of $262.03 and a twelve month high of $370.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $88.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.55, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.53. 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 quarterly earnings data 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 period in the prior year, the business earned $6.79 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Cigna Group will post 29.77 EPS for the current year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were issued 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.86%. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio is 49.35%.

Insider Activity

In other The Cigna Group news, CEO David Cordani sold 26,527 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 $8,173,499.24. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 127,767 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,367,568.04. This represents a 17.19 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Noelle K. Eder sold 9,944 shares of The Cigna Group stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 13,406 shares in the company, valued at $4,289,920. This represents a 42.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $360.00 price objective (down previously from $415.00) on shares of The Cigna Group in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada set a $355.00 price target on shares of The Cigna Group in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on The Cigna Group from $403.00 to $379.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered The Cigna Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $323.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer cut their target price on shares of The Cigna Group from $400.00 to $375.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $373.25.

The Cigna Group 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.