Claris Advisors LLC MO Grows Stock Position in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Claris Advisors LLC MO grew its stake in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 5.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 823 shares of the health services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Claris Advisors LLC MO’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $227,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of CI. Morton Community Bank lifted its holdings in The Cigna Group by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Morton Community Bank now owns 12,048 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $3,327,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares during the period. Independent Advisor Alliance increased its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 179.3% during the 4th quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 5,895 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $1,628,000 after purchasing an additional 3,784 shares in the last quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. increased its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 5,527 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $1,526,000 after purchasing an additional 221 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its position in shares of The Cigna Group by 9.4% in the fourth quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 59,743 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $16,498,000 after acquiring an additional 5,126 shares during the period. Finally, FWG Holdings LLC raised its holdings in The Cigna Group by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. FWG Holdings LLC now owns 1,395 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $408,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at The Cigna Group

In related news, insider Nicole S. Jones sold 4,904 shares of The Cigna Group stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 29,421 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,065,198.52. The trade was a 14.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO David Cordani sold 26,527 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 127,767 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,367,568.04. The trade was a 17.19 % 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 corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CI has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays decreased 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. Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of 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. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of The Cigna Group from $410.00 to $390.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on The Cigna Group from $403.00 to $379.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $372.31.

The Cigna Group Price Performance

Shares of CI opened at $326.87 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $293.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $317.40. The stock has a market cap of $89.46 billion, a PE ratio of 26.71, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.53. The Cigna Group has a 1-year low of $262.03 and a 1-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 Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last posted its 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 net margin of 1.39% and a return on equity of 18.61%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $6.79 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that The Cigna Group will post 29.77 EPS for the current 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 issued a dividend of $1.51 per share. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.85%. This is a boost from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. 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.