The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) Given Overweight Rating at Piper Sandler

Piper Sandler restated their overweight rating on shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. Piper Sandler currently has a $348.00 price target on the health services provider’s stock, down from their prior price target of $394.00.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on CI. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on The Cigna Group from $400.00 to $375.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a 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 report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays cut their price target on shares of The Cigna Group from $420.00 to $339.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Stephens lowered their price objective on shares of The Cigna Group from $410.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered The Cigna Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $377.07.

The Cigna Group Stock Performance

NYSE:CI opened at $293.00 on Monday. 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 $81.50 billion, a PE ratio of 23.94, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.54. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $292.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $323.53. The Cigna Group has a 1-year low of $262.03 and a 1-year high of $370.83.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 previous year, the business posted $6.79 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that The Cigna Group will post 29.66 EPS for the current year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be given a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is 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 2.06%. The Cigna Group’s payout ratio is 45.75%.

Institutional Trading of The Cigna Group

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. purchased a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group during the fourth quarter worth about $428,000. Bailard Inc. increased its holdings in The Cigna Group by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 4,963 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,370,000 after purchasing an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in The Cigna Group by 7.9% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,309 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $635,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of The Cigna Group by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 1,749 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $483,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Factorial Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Cigna Group by 7.8% during the 4th quarter. Factorial Partners LLC now owns 12,450 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $3,438,000 after buying an additional 900 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

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.