The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) have earned a consensus rating of “Buy” from the fifteen research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $395.93.

CI has been the subject of several recent research reports. Barclays upped their price target on shares of The Cigna Group from $405.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Truist Financial lowered their target price on The Cigna Group from $420.00 to $390.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com cut shares of The Cigna Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $410.00 price target on shares of The Cigna Group in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $394.00 price objective (up from $392.00) on shares of The Cigna Group in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th.

The Cigna Group Stock Performance

NYSE CI opened at $284.16 on Monday. The Cigna Group has a 1 year low of $262.03 and a 1 year high of $370.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $79.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.81, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $301.37 and its 200 day simple moving average is $326.79.

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

The Cigna Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 4th were issued a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 4th. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.97%. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.83%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in The Cigna Group by 63.4% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,547,245 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $510,467,000 after buying an additional 600,215 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in The Cigna Group by 23.4% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,138,193 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $706,822,000 after acquiring an additional 405,694 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 145.3% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 683,361 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $225,899,000 after purchasing an additional 404,791 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in The Cigna Group by 49,287.7% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 400,040 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $138,590,000 after buying an additional 399,230 shares during the period. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ grew its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 526.3% during the second quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 363,537 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $120,174,000 after purchasing an additional 305,490 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors 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.