E Fund Management Co. Ltd. Has $495,000 Stock Position in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

E Fund Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 98.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,791 shares of the health services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 889 shares during the quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $495,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Candriam S.C.A. lifted its stake in shares of The Cigna Group by 210.5% in the 4th quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 76,881 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $21,230,000 after purchasing an additional 52,119 shares during the period. One Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of The Cigna Group by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. One Capital Management LLC now owns 39,339 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $10,863,000 after purchasing an additional 324 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of The Cigna Group in the 4th quarter valued at $313,911,000. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of The Cigna Group by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 27,474 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $7,587,000 after buying an additional 1,203 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of The Cigna Group by 24.5% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 864 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $239,000 after buying an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

The Cigna Group Trading Up 1.9 %

The Cigna Group stock opened at $321.48 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $292.84 and a 200-day moving average of $317.89. The Cigna Group has a one year low of $262.03 and a one year high of $370.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The company has a market cap of $89.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.26, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.54.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The health services provider reported $6.64 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 quarter last year, the company earned $6.79 EPS. On average, equities 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be paid a $1.51 dividend. This is an increase from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.88%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on CI shares. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of The Cigna Group from $420.00 to $339.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of The Cigna Group from $370.00 to $341.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of The Cigna Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their price objective on shares of The Cigna Group from $400.00 to $350.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein cut The Cigna Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $323.00 target price for the company. in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Two investment 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $372.31.

Insider Activity at The Cigna Group

In related news, CEO David Cordani sold 26,527 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.12, for a total value of $8,173,499.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 127,767 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,367,568.04. This trade represents a 17.19 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Nicole S. Jones sold 4,904 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.12, for a total transaction of $1,511,020.48. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 29,421 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,065,198.52. This trade represents a 14.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

The Cigna Group 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.