Quantbot Technologies LP Boosts Stock Position in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Quantbot Technologies LP boosted its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 36.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,128 shares of the health services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,137 shares during the quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $5,282,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sterling Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in The Cigna Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,367,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 323,911 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $112,216,000 after acquiring an additional 11,228 shares during the last quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. increased its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 75,837 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $20,942,000 after acquiring an additional 858 shares during the last quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. increased its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 2.8% in 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 last quarter. Finally, Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co increased its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 28.3% in the 3rd 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 acquiring an additional 3,466 shares during the last quarter. 86.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Stephens lowered their price target on The Cigna Group from $410.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays lowered their price target on The Cigna Group from $420.00 to $339.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on The Cigna Group from $403.00 to $379.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on The Cigna Group from $400.00 to $375.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered The Cigna Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $323.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $373.25.

The Cigna Group Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of CI stock opened at $316.78 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $300.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $315.40. The Cigna Group has a fifty-two week low of $262.03 and a fifty-two week high of $370.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $86.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.88, a P/E/G 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 announced 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 firm posted $6.79 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that The Cigna Group will post 29.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th were given a $1.51 dividend. This is a positive change from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.91%. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.35%.

Insider Activity at The Cigna Group

In related news, Director Elder Granger sold 2,376 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.35, for a total value of $737,391.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,471 shares in the company, valued at $1,697,924.85. This trade represents a 30.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO David Cordani sold 26,527 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.12, for a total value of $8,173,499.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 127,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $39,367,568.04. This trade represents a 17.19 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 43,751 shares of company stock worth $13,603,991 in the last quarter. 0.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.