The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) Holdings Boosted by Townsquare Capital LLC

Townsquare Capital LLC grew its holdings in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 35,634 shares of the health services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 552 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $9,840,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in The Cigna Group by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 11,556,278 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $3,191,151,000 after acquiring an additional 501,320 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,957,180 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $1,640,878,000 after purchasing an additional 101,737 shares during the period. GQG Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of The Cigna Group by 22.4% in the fourth quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 4,021,582 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,110,520,000 after purchasing an additional 737,099 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $867,785,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in The Cigna Group by 10.8% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,927,223 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $808,323,000 after purchasing an additional 286,515 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CI has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of The Cigna Group from $410.00 to $390.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Guggenheim started coverage on The Cigna Group in a report on Wednesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $384.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on The Cigna Group from $370.00 to $341.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Truist Financial raised their price target on The Cigna Group from $375.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on The Cigna Group from $403.00 to $379.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $375.00.

The Cigna Group Price Performance

NYSE CI opened at $329.52 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $90.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.92, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.51. The Cigna Group has a 1 year low of $262.03 and a 1 year high of $370.83. 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 company has a fifty day simple moving average of $312.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $311.31.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The health services provider reported $6.64 earnings per share (EPS) 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 quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $6.79 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Cigna Group will post 29.77 EPS for the current year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were given a $1.51 dividend. This is an increase from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. The Cigna Group’s payout ratio is currently 49.35%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Elder Granger sold 2,376 shares of The Cigna Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.35, for a total transaction of $737,391.60. Following the sale, the director now owns 5,471 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,697,924.85. This trade represents a 30.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO David Cordani sold 26,527 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $39,367,568.04. The trade was a 17.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 43,751 shares of company stock valued at $13,603,991. 0.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.