Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. raised its position in shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 4.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,527 shares of the health services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 221 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $1,526,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Collier Financial purchased a new stake in The Cigna Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in The Cigna Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Cigna Group in the third quarter worth about $37,000. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA purchased a new position in shares of The Cigna Group in the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Cigna Group in the fourth quarter worth about $53,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. UBS Group decreased their price objective on The Cigna Group from $410.00 to $390.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price objective on The Cigna Group from $400.00 to $350.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on The Cigna Group from $400.00 to $375.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on The Cigna Group from $370.00 to $341.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Stephens decreased their price objective on The Cigna Group from $410.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $372.31.

The Cigna Group Stock Performance

The Cigna Group stock opened at $317.24 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $294.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $317.14. 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 stock has a market cap of $86.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.92, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.53. The Cigna Group has a fifty-two week low of $262.03 and a fifty-two week high of $370.83.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last released its 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 net margin of 1.39% and a return on equity of 18.61%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.79 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that The Cigna Group will post 29.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be issued a $1.51 dividend. This is a positive change from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.90%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. The Cigna Group’s payout ratio is presently 49.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other The Cigna Group news, insider Noelle K. Eder sold 9,944 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $320.00, for a total transaction of $3,182,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,406 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,289,920. The trade was a 42.59 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO David Cordani sold 26,527 shares of the business’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 approximately $39,367,568.04. This represents a 17.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 41,375 shares of company stock worth $12,866,600 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.60% 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.