Generali Asset Management SPA SGR Takes $7.20 Million Position in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Generali Asset Management SPA SGR bought a new stake in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm bought 26,078 shares of the health services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $7,201,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in CI. TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Collier Financial purchased a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA purchased a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. 86.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, 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 value of $8,173,499.24. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 127,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $39,367,568.04. This represents a 17.19 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Noelle K. Eder sold 9,944 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $320.00, for a total value of $3,182,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,406 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,289,920. The trade was a 42.59 % 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 worth $13,603,991 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

The Cigna Group Stock Performance

CI opened at $322.15 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $88.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.32, 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 current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $298.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $315.64. 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The health services provider reported $6.64 earnings per share 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 period last year, the firm posted $6.79 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that The Cigna Group will post 29.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be issued a $1.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.87%. This is a boost from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 49.35%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CI has been the subject of several research reports. Royal Bank of Canada set a $355.00 target price on The Cigna Group in a report on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer dropped their price target on 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. StockNews.com upgraded The Cigna Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Stephens dropped their price target on 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. Finally, Raymond James restated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $360.00 price target (down previously from $415.00) on shares of The Cigna Group in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two research 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat, The Cigna Group presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $372.31.

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.