The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) Stock Price Down 3.2%

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)’s stock price was down 3.2% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $348.80 and last traded at $355.05. Approximately 310,624 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 80% from the average daily volume of 1,523,316 shares. The stock had previously closed at $366.64.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on CI shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of The Cigna Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of The Cigna Group from $393.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Baird R W upgraded shares of The Cigna Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $400.00 price target on shares of The Cigna Group in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of The Cigna Group from $435.00 to $438.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, The Cigna Group has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $384.86.

The Cigna Group Price Performance

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 company’s 50-day simple moving average is $339.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $343.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $100.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 0.52.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The health services provider reported $6.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.30 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $6.13 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 24.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that The Cigna Group will post 28.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Cigna Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 4th will be paid a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 4th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.59%. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.98%.

Insider Activity at The Cigna Group

In other The Cigna Group news, Director William J. Delaney III sold 2,691 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.68, for a total transaction of $922,151.88. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 17,539 shares in the company, valued at $6,010,264.52. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, Director William J. Delaney III sold 2,691 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of 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 document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Elder Granger sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $338.08, for a total transaction of $338,080.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,471 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,849,635.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 9,033 shares of company stock worth $3,095,820. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CI. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of The Cigna Group by 8.1% in 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 lifted its holdings in The Cigna Group by 6.4% in 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 in the last quarter. Sanders Capital LLC raised its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 97,277 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in The Cigna Group during the 4th quarter valued at $1,006,348,000. Finally, Parnassus Investments LLC raised its holdings in 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 valued at $803,143,000 after buying an additional 126,598 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

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.