CoreFirst Bank & Trust Makes New Investment in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

CoreFirst Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm acquired 2,082 shares of the health services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $575,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of CI. TCTC Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in The Cigna Group in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Collier Financial acquired a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in The Cigna Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA acquired a new position in The Cigna Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in The Cigna Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $53,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

The Cigna Group Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE CI opened at $320.79 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $87.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.21, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.53. The business’s fifty day moving average is $301.62 and its 200-day moving average is $314.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The Cigna Group has a one year low of $262.03 and a one year high of $370.83.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The health services provider reported $6.64 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.84 by ($1.20). The Cigna Group had a return on equity of 18.61% and a net margin of 1.39%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $6.79 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that The Cigna Group will post 29.77 EPS for the current year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were issued a dividend of $1.51 per share. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.88%. This is a positive change from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio is 49.35%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Elder Granger sold 2,376 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.35, for a total value of $737,391.60. Following the sale, the director now owns 5,471 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,697,924.85. The trade was a 30.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Noelle K. Eder sold 9,944 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $320.00, for a total transaction of $3,182,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,406 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,289,920. This trade represents a 42.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 43,751 shares of company stock valued at $13,603,991 over the last ninety days. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on CI shares. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on The Cigna Group from $403.00 to $379.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price objective on shares of The Cigna Group from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut shares of The Cigna Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $323.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Stephens lowered their target price on shares of The Cigna Group from $410.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada set a $355.00 price target on The Cigna Group in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two research 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $373.25.

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.