Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Purchases 5,961 Shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its holdings in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 22.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 31,990 shares of the health services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,961 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $9,579,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bogart Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Cigna Group by 104.5% during the 3rd quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 90 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in The Cigna Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Fairfield Bush & CO. purchased a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group during the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new position in The Cigna Group in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Optimum Investment Advisors raised its position in shares of The Cigna Group by 110.0% in the third quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 105 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. 86.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on CI shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of The Cigna Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $355.00 to $370.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded The Cigna Group from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $327.00 to $354.00 in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $384.00 price target on shares of The Cigna Group in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised The Cigna Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $330.00 to $372.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, Barclays began coverage on shares of The Cigna Group in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $393.00 price objective for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $362.14.

The Cigna Group Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE CI opened at $348.78 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $348.06 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $315.03. The Cigna Group has a 52-week low of $240.50 and a 52-week high of $365.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $101.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.06, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.56.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 2nd. The health services provider reported $6.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.54 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $51.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $48.91 billion. The Cigna Group had a return on equity of 13.59% and a net margin of 2.64%. The business’s revenue was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $4.96 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that The Cigna Group will post 28.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 21st. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 6th were paid a dividend of $1.40 per share. This is an increase from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.23. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 5th. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.20%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Hoeltzel Mary T. Agoglia sold 4,867 shares of The Cigna Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $330.48, for a total value of $1,608,446.16. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $694,668.96. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Hoeltzel Mary T. Agoglia sold 4,867 shares of The Cigna Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $330.48, for a total value of $1,608,446.16. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $694,668.96. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO David Cordani sold 38,065 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.22, for a total transaction of $12,760,149.30. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 329,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $110,394,985.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 114,144 shares of company stock valued at $39,296,330. 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.