Aviva PLC Sells 65,269 Shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Aviva PLC cut its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 27.9% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 168,354 shares of the health services provider’s stock after selling 65,269 shares during the period. Aviva PLC’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $46,489,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of CI. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position in shares of The Cigna Group by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 11,556,278 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $3,191,151,000 after buying an additional 501,320 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in The Cigna Group by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,957,180 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,640,878,000 after acquiring an additional 101,737 shares in the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 22.4% in the fourth quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 4,021,582 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,110,520,000 after acquiring an additional 737,099 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $867,785,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 10.8% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,927,223 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $808,323,000 after purchasing an additional 286,515 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CI has been the subject of several research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price objective on shares of The Cigna Group from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Stephens dropped their price target on The Cigna Group from $410.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com upgraded The Cigna Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 29th. Barclays lowered their target price on The Cigna Group from $420.00 to $339.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered 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 note on Thursday, February 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $373.25.

The Cigna Group Price Performance

CI stock opened at $322.02 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The firm has a market cap of $88.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.31, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.50. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $308.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $312.70. The Cigna Group has a 12-month low of $262.03 and a 12-month 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 analysts’ consensus estimates 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 period last year, the company earned $6.79 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that The Cigna Group will post 29.77 earnings per share for the current year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were given a dividend of $1.51 per share. This is an increase from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.88%. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.35%.

Insider Activity at The Cigna Group

In other The Cigna Group news, insider Nicole S. Jones sold 4,904 shares of the firm’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 $1,511,020.48. Following the completion of the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible 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 stock was sold at an average price of $320.00, for a total value of $3,182,080.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,406 shares in the company, valued at $4,289,920. The trade was a 42.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 quarter. Company insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

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.