V Square Quantitative Management LLC Purchases 323 Shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its stake in shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 5.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,084 shares of the health services provider’s stock after buying an additional 323 shares during the quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $1,680,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of CI. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of The Cigna Group by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 14,230,397 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $4,929,978,000 after buying an additional 279,880 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in shares of The Cigna Group by 1.2% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 11,054,958 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $3,829,880,000 after buying an additional 130,048 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in The Cigna Group by 0.4% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,855,443 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $2,021,563,000 after purchasing an additional 22,408 shares during the last quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC boosted its position in The Cigna Group by 2.1% during the third quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 2,922,121 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $1,012,340,000 after purchasing an additional 59,011 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of The Cigna Group by 2.1% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,168,959 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $751,414,000 after buying an additional 44,810 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on CI shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on The Cigna Group from $398.00 to $394.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on The Cigna Group from $403.00 to $379.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on The Cigna Group from $370.00 to $341.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays lowered their price objective on The Cigna Group from $420.00 to $339.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on The Cigna Group from $384.00 to $377.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, The Cigna Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $373.69.

The Cigna Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CI opened at $299.99 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $287.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $321.61. The Cigna Group has a 52-week low of $262.03 and a 52-week high of $370.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.66. The company has a market cap of $83.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.51, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.54.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 1.39% and a return on equity of 18.61%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $6.79 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that The Cigna Group will post 29.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be given a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. This is a boost from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 45.75%.

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.