Ieq Capital LLC Increases Holdings in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Ieq Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 9.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,113 shares of the health services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 860 shares during the quarter. Ieq Capital LLC’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $3,343,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Silicon Valley Capital Partners boosted its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Silicon Valley Capital Partners now owns 70 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Cedar Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in The Cigna Group during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in The Cigna Group by 69.5% in the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 100 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Pineridge Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of The Cigna Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Institutional investors own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, 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 value of $1,654,322.95. Following the completion of the sale, 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 SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Brian C. Evanko sold 4,795 shares of The Cigna Group stock in a transaction on Monday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $345.01, for a total value of $1,654,322.95. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 39,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,773,834.23. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director William J. Delaney III sold 2,691 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.68, for a total value of $922,151.88. Following the sale, the director now owns 17,539 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,010,264.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

The Cigna Group Price Performance

The Cigna Group stock opened at $356.14 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $101.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.50. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $347.02 and a two-hundred day moving average of $345.05. The Cigna Group has a 1 year low of $253.95 and a 1 year high of $370.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.71.

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

The Cigna Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 4th were issued a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 4th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.57%. The Cigna Group’s payout ratio is currently 45.98%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on CI shares. Baird R W raised shares of The Cigna Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of The Cigna Group from $402.00 to $422.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $400.00 price target on shares of The Cigna Group in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $384.00 price objective on shares of The Cigna Group in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on The Cigna Group from $393.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $392.79.

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.