Samalin Investment Counsel LLC Increases Position in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Samalin Investment Counsel LLC lifted its position in shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,753 shares of the health services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the quarter. Samalin Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $484,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in CI. Swedbank AB increased its stake in shares of The Cigna Group by 26.6% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 570,283 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $197,569,000 after acquiring an additional 119,681 shares during the period. Prospera Financial Services Inc grew its position in The Cigna Group by 9.2% during the third quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 1,378 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $480,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its position in The Cigna Group by 1.9% during the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,141 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $2,474,000 after buying an additional 132 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in The Cigna Group by 1.3% during the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 21,532 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $7,460,000 after buying an additional 268 shares during the period. Finally, Eagle Asset Management Inc. grew its position in The Cigna Group by 21.7% during the third quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 10,397 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $3,325,000 after buying an additional 1,855 shares during the period. 86.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Nicole S. Jones sold 4,904 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.12, for a total value of $1,511,020.48. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 29,421 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,065,198.52. This trade represents a 14.29 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Elder Granger sold 2,376 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.35, for a total transaction of $737,391.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,471 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 a total of 43,751 shares of company stock valued at $13,603,991 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

The Cigna Group Stock Performance

Shares of CI opened at $316.78 on Monday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $86.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.88, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.53. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $300.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $314.69. The Cigna Group has a 1 year low of $262.03 and a 1 year high of $370.83.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 company posted $6.79 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Cigna Group will post 29.77 EPS for the current year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were paid a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.91%. This is an increase from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.35%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada set a $355.00 target price on shares of The Cigna Group in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Stephens lowered their target price on shares of The Cigna Group from $410.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of The Cigna Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of The Cigna Group from $403.00 to $379.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered their price target on shares of The Cigna Group from $400.00 to $375.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $373.25.

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.