Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership Decreases Stake in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership decreased its holdings in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 27.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,744,197 shares of the health services provider’s stock after selling 655,969 shares during the quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $481,643,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CI. Allianz SE purchased a new position in The Cigna Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $6,902,000. Allstate Corp acquired a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,293,000. Maridea Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $343,000. DnB Asset Management AS lifted its position in The Cigna Group by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. DnB Asset Management AS now owns 130,201 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $35,954,000 after acquiring an additional 8,139 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Level Four Advisory Services LLC grew its position in The Cigna Group by 12.1% in the fourth quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,941 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $536,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. 86.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on CI shares. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of The Cigna Group from $370.00 to $341.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their target price on The Cigna Group from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Barclays dropped their target price on The Cigna Group from $420.00 to $339.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered The Cigna Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $323.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Stephens dropped 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 equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $373.25.

Insider Activity at The Cigna Group

In other news, CEO David Cordani sold 26,527 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.12, for a total transaction of $8,173,499.24. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 127,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $39,367,568.04. This trade represents a 17.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Elder Granger sold 2,376 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.35, for a total transaction of $737,391.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 5,471 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,697,924.85. The trade was a 30.28 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 43,751 shares of company stock worth $13,603,991 in the last ninety days. 0.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

The Cigna Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CI opened at $324.97 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $88.94 billion, a PE ratio of 26.55, a P/E/G 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 firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $304.67 and a 200 day simple moving average of $313.78. 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 posted 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 net margin of 1.39% and a return on equity of 18.61%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $6.79 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Cigna Group will post 29.77 EPS for the current year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were given a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.86%. This is a positive change from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 49.35%.

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.