Cornerstone Advisors LLC Buys 400 Shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Cornerstone Advisors LLC raised its stake in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 2.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 16,000 shares of the health services provider’s stock after buying an additional 400 shares during the period. Cornerstone Advisors LLC’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $4,418,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Adero Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Adero Partners LLC now owns 788 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $273,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 1,219 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $422,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. now owns 1,883 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $520,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,670 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $1,013,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Smithfield Trust Co boosted its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 1,080 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $373,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CI has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their price target on shares of The Cigna Group from $400.00 to $350.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of The Cigna Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Stephens cut their target price on shares of The Cigna Group from $410.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of The Cigna Group from $370.00 to $341.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of The Cigna Group from $390.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $372.31.

The Cigna Group Stock Performance

CI opened at $326.87 on Tuesday. The Cigna Group has a 1-year low of $262.03 and a 1-year high of $370.83. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $293.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $317.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The firm has a market cap of $89.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.71, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.53.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The health services provider reported $6.64 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 company posted $6.79 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be issued a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. This is an increase from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The Cigna Group’s payout ratio is 49.35%.

Insider Transactions at The Cigna Group

In related news, CEO David Cordani sold 26,527 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.12, for a total transaction of $8,173,499.24. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 127,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $39,367,568.04. This represents a 17.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Nicole S. Jones sold 4,904 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.12, for a total transaction of $1,511,020.48. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 29,421 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,065,198.52. The trade was a 14.29 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

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.