Principal Securities Inc. Acquires 1,281 Shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Principal Securities Inc. raised its stake in shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 16.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,096 shares of the health services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,281 shares during the quarter. Principal Securities Inc.’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $2,512,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of CI. Collier Financial purchased a new position in The Cigna Group during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in The Cigna Group in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in The Cigna Group during the third quarter valued at $37,000. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA purchased a new position in shares of The Cigna Group in the 4th quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of The Cigna Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $45,000. Institutional investors own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on The Cigna Group from $390.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $348.00 price target (down from $394.00) on shares of The Cigna Group in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Stephens cut their price objective on shares of The Cigna Group from $410.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of The Cigna Group from $384.00 to $377.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of 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. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $373.69.

The Cigna Group Trading Down 2.6 %

NYSE:CI opened at $292.12 on Tuesday. 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 firm has a market cap of $81.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.87, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.54. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $286.46 and a 200-day simple moving average of $320.67. The Cigna Group has a one year low of $262.03 and a one year high of $370.83.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The health services provider reported $6.64 earnings per share (EPS) 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 quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.79 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that The Cigna Group will post 29.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be paid a dividend of $1.51 per share. This is a positive change from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.07%. The Cigna Group’s payout ratio is presently 45.75%.

About The Cigna Group

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.