The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) Short Interest Up 16.5% in June

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,820,000 shares, an increase of 16.5% from the May 31st total of 3,280,000 shares. Approximately 1.4% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,550,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.5 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on CI. Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of The Cigna Group from $370.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Baird R W raised shares of The Cigna Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 30th. StockNews.com lowered shares of The Cigna Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $400.00 price objective on shares of The Cigna Group in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $392.00 price objective (up from $382.00) on shares of The Cigna Group in a report on Monday, March 4th. Two 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $376.20.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Noelle K. Eder sold 10,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $348.47, for a total value of $3,728,629.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 15,824 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,514,189.28. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other The Cigna Group news, insider Brian C. Evanko sold 4,795 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $345.01, for a total transaction of $1,654,322.95. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 39,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,773,834.23. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Noelle K. Eder sold 10,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $348.47, for a total transaction of $3,728,629.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,824 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,514,189.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 22,988 shares of company stock worth $7,975,726. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On The Cigna Group

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Seizert Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in The Cigna Group by 195.8% during the 4th quarter. Seizert Capital Partners LLC now owns 32,150 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $9,627,000 after purchasing an additional 21,280 shares during the period. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. increased its holdings in The Cigna Group by 61.4% during the 4th quarter. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. now owns 9,307 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $2,772,000 after purchasing an additional 3,539 shares during the period. TFO Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in The Cigna Group by 98,980.0% during the 4th quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 4,954 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,497,000 after purchasing an additional 4,949 shares during the period. Ellsworth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Cigna Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $4,377,000. Finally, Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Cigna Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,811,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

The Cigna Group Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:CI opened at $330.57 on Monday. The Cigna Group has a 12-month low of $253.95 and a 12-month high of $365.71. The company has a market capitalization of $93.91 billion, a PE ratio of 27.14, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.53. The business has a 50 day moving average of $341.23 and a two-hundred day moving average of $333.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The health services provider reported $6.47 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.17 by $0.30. The business had revenue of $57.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $56.59 billion. The Cigna Group had a return on equity of 17.24% and a net margin of 1.76%. The business’s revenue was up 23.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $5.41 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that The Cigna Group will post 28.48 EPS for the current year.

The Cigna Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 20th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 4th were paid a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 4th. The Cigna Group’s payout ratio is 45.98%.

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.