Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT Decreases Stake in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT decreased its position in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 18,655 shares of the health services provider’s stock after selling 64 shares during the period. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $6,167,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of The Cigna Group by 8.1% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,793,138 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $9,731,000,000 after purchasing an additional 2,017,333 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of The Cigna Group by 6.4% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 14,341,233 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $5,208,593,000 after purchasing an additional 867,180 shares during the last quarter. Sanders Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of The Cigna Group by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 7,727,729 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $2,314,068,000 after purchasing an additional 97,277 shares during the last quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of The Cigna Group by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 2,682,061 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $803,143,000 after purchasing an additional 126,598 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of The Cigna Group by 6.1% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,628,807 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $869,078,000 after purchasing an additional 150,765 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at The Cigna Group

In related news, insider Brian C. Evanko sold 4,795 shares of The Cigna Group stock in a transaction on Monday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $345.01, for a total value 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director William J. Delaney III sold 2,691 shares of The Cigna Group stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.68, for a total value of $922,151.88. Following the transaction, the director now owns 17,539 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,010,264.52. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Brian C. Evanko sold 4,795 shares of the business’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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 39,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,773,834.23. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CI has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird initiated coverage on shares of The Cigna Group in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $388.00 price target for the company. Baird R W raised shares of The Cigna Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 30th. StockNews.com raised shares of The Cigna Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $384.00 price objective on shares of The Cigna Group in a report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of The Cigna Group in a report on Wednesday, June 26th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $400.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, The Cigna Group currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $392.79.

The Cigna Group Stock Performance

NYSE CI opened at $355.39 on Thursday. The Cigna Group has a 52-week low of $253.95 and a 52-week high of $370.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.71. The company has a market capitalization of $100.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a fifty day moving average of $346.11 and a 200-day moving average of $344.75.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The health services provider reported $6.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.42 by $0.30. The Cigna Group had a net margin of 1.70% and a return on equity of 17.83%. The company had revenue of $60.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $58.30 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $6.13 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 24.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that The Cigna Group will post 28.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Cigna Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 4th will be issued a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 4th. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 45.98%.

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.