Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Sells 1,648 Shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. reduced its stake in shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 1.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 119,063 shares of the health services provider’s stock after selling 1,648 shares during the quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $32,878,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Sterling Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,367,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in The Cigna Group by 3.6% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 323,911 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $112,216,000 after purchasing an additional 11,228 shares during the last quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 75,837 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $20,942,000 after purchasing an additional 858 shares in the last quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. increased its stake in shares of The Cigna Group by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 56,933 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $15,721,000 after purchasing an additional 1,548 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co raised its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 28.3% during the 3rd quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 15,713 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $5,444,000 after buying an additional 3,466 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Barclays decreased their target price on The Cigna Group from $420.00 to $339.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of The Cigna Group from $390.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Stephens cut 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 research report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of The Cigna Group from $403.00 to $379.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on The Cigna Group from $370.00 to $341.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. 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, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $373.25.

Insider Activity at The Cigna Group

In related news, insider Nicole S. Jones sold 4,904 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.12, for a total value of $1,511,020.48. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 29,421 shares in the company, valued at $9,065,198.52. This trade represents a 14.29 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Noelle K. Eder sold 9,944 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $320.00, for a total transaction of $3,182,080.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 13,406 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,289,920. This trade represents a 42.59 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 43,751 shares of company stock worth $13,603,991 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

The Cigna Group Price Performance

CI stock opened at $321.34 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The firm has a market cap of $87.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.25, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.53. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $300.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $315.72. The Cigna Group has a 12-month low of $262.03 and a 12-month 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 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 period last year, the company earned $6.79 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that The Cigna Group will post 29.77 earnings per share for the current year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

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

The Cigna Group 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.