OneAscent Financial Services LLC Raises Stake in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

OneAscent Financial Services LLC raised its position in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 39.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,832 shares of the health services provider’s stock after buying an additional 520 shares during the quarter. OneAscent Financial Services LLC’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $506,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of CI. Benjamin Edwards Inc. purchased a new stake in The Cigna Group during the third quarter worth approximately $730,000. Garden State Investment Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of The Cigna Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $444,000. Hilltop Holdings Inc. grew its position in shares of The Cigna Group by 70.5% in the 3rd quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 1,173 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $406,000 after buying an additional 485 shares during the last quarter. Redwood Investment Management LLC raised its stake in The Cigna Group by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Redwood Investment Management LLC now owns 4,383 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,524,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal London Asset Management Ltd. lifted its position in The Cigna Group by 1.3% in the third quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 120,711 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $41,819,000 after acquiring an additional 1,607 shares during the last quarter. 86.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

The Cigna Group Price Performance

Shares of CI opened at $338.76 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $308.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $313.31. The Cigna Group has a twelve month low of $262.03 and a twelve month high of $370.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $92.71 billion, a PE ratio of 27.68, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.50.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The health services provider reported $6.64 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.84 by ($1.20). The Cigna Group had a net margin of 1.39% and a return on equity of 18.61%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $6.79 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that The Cigna Group will post 29.77 earnings per share for the current year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were issued a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. This is an increase from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on CI. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on The Cigna Group from $390.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. StockNews.com raised The Cigna Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 29th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on The Cigna Group from $370.00 to $341.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $348.00 target price (down from $394.00) on shares of The Cigna Group in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $360.00 price target (down previously from $415.00) on shares of The Cigna Group in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $373.25.

Insider Activity at The Cigna Group

In other news, CEO David Cordani sold 26,527 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.12, for a total value of $8,173,499.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 127,767 shares in the company, valued at $39,367,568.04. This trade represents a 17.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Elder Granger sold 2,376 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.35, for a total transaction of $737,391.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 5,471 shares in the company, valued at $1,697,924.85. This represents a 30.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 43,751 shares of company stock worth $13,603,991 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

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.