Douglas Lane & Associates LLC Raises Stock Position in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Douglas Lane & Associates LLC lifted its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 3.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,636 shares of the health services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $452,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in CI. Ulland Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in The Cigna Group by 2,500.0% in the 3rd quarter. Ulland Investment Advisors LLC now owns 104 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in The Cigna Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in The Cigna Group in the third quarter worth approximately $45,000. Intact Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in The Cigna Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $69,000. Finally, Stone House Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of The Cigna Group by 25.0% in the 3rd quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC now owns 200 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $69,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $410.00 target price on shares of The Cigna Group in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on The Cigna Group from $402.00 to $422.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on The Cigna Group from $398.00 to $394.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 4th. 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 on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of The Cigna Group from $420.00 to $390.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $395.93.

The Cigna Group Price Performance

Shares of CI opened at $279.11 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $77.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.54. The Cigna Group has a fifty-two week low of $262.03 and a fifty-two week high of $370.83. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $306.25 and a 200-day simple moving average of $329.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.72.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The health services provider reported $7.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.22 by $0.29. The Cigna Group had a return on equity of 18.42% and a net margin of 1.31%. The company had revenue of $63.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $59.58 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $6.77 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 29.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that The Cigna Group will post 28.5 earnings per share for the current year.

The Cigna Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 4th were given a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 4th. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.01%. The Cigna Group’s payout ratio is currently 52.83%.

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.