Norges Bank Buys Shares of 3,142,556 The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Norges Bank purchased a new stake in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 3,142,556 shares of the health services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $867,785,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in CI. TCTC Holdings LLC acquired a new position in The Cigna Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Collier Financial bought a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA bought a new position in The Cigna Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in The Cigna Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $53,000. 86.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at The Cigna Group

In related news, insider Nicole S. Jones sold 4,904 shares of The Cigna Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.12, for a total transaction of $1,511,020.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 29,421 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,065,198.52. This trade represents a 14.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Elder Granger sold 2,376 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.35, for a total value of $737,391.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 5,471 shares in the company, valued at $1,697,924.85. This represents a 30.28 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 43,751 shares of company stock worth $13,603,991 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on CI. Sanford C. Bernstein cut shares of The Cigna Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $323.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Stephens reduced their target price 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. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on The Cigna Group from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Royal Bank of Canada set a $355.00 price objective on The Cigna Group in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their target price on The Cigna Group from $390.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $373.25.

The Cigna Group Price Performance

NYSE:CI opened at $324.74 on Friday. The Cigna Group has a 52-week low of $262.03 and a 52-week high of $370.83. The company has a market cap of $88.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.53, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.53. 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’s 50-day simple moving average is $303.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $314.31.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The health services provider reported $6.64 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 last year, the business posted $6.79 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that The Cigna Group will post 29.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were given a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.86%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. This is an increase from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.