Wells Fargo & Company Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) Stock

Key Points

• Wells Fargo raised its Cigna price target from $307 to $325, implying 10.9% upside, while maintaining an “equal weight” rating.
• Cigna beat quarterly expectations, reporting EPS of $7.98 versus a $7.52 consensus and revenue of $73.79 billion versus $72.64 billion; revenue grew 5.6% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment is moderately positive overall: 14 analysts rate the stock Buy and eight Hold, with an average price target of $336.90.

Cigna Group (NYSE:CI - Get Free Report) had its target price lifted by research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $307.00 to $325.00 in a report released on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "equal weight" rating on the health services provider's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price objective points to a potential upside of 10.90% from the stock's current price.

CI has been the subject of a number of other reports. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Cigna Group from $288.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $337.00 price target on shares of Cigna Group in a research report on Thursday, October 1st. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Cigna Group in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Robert W. Baird set a $362.00 price target on Cigna Group in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on Cigna Group from $387.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Cigna Group presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $336.90.

Cigna Group Price Performance

Shares of CI stock traded down $3.22 during trading on Friday, hitting $293.05. The company had a trading volume of 314,392 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,667,678. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock's 50-day moving average is $287.30 and its two-hundred day moving average is $282.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $77.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.25. Cigna Group has a 52 week low of $257.85 and a 52 week high of $318.05.

Cigna Group (NYSE:CI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The health services provider reported $7.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.52 by $0.46. Cigna Group had a net margin of 2.09% and a return on equity of 19.57%. The business had revenue of $73.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $72.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $7.83 earnings per share. Cigna Group's revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Cigna Group will post 30.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Cigna Group

In other news, insider Everett Neville sold 617 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.05, for a total value of $175,258.85. Following the transaction, the insider owned 5,053 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,435,304.65. This trade represents a 10.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Nicole S. Jones sold 2,677 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.61, for a total transaction of $748,515.97. Following the sale, the insider owned 25,880 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,236,306.80. This represents a 9.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cigna Group

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. GQG Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cigna Group in the second quarter worth about $1,628,918,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in Cigna Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $827,692,000. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in Cigna Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $542,779,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new stake in shares of Cigna Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $241,312,000. Finally, Aberdeen Group plc grew its position in shares of Cigna Group by 389.6% in the 3rd quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 1,078,857 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $283,907,000 after buying an additional 858,488 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.99% of the company's stock.

Cigna Group News Roundup

These are some of the CI news items that stood out recently:

• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo raised its price target to $335 from $307, signaling increased confidence in Cigna’s potential. Wells Fargo raises Cigna price target
• Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage points to a higher earnings outlook after a strong third quarter. Cigna beat analysts’ quarterly EPS and revenue estimates, with revenue up 5.6% year over year; a higher forecast may bolster the longer-term growth case. Cigna bull case and higher EPS outlook
• Neutral Sentiment: Jefferies raised its target to $304 from $288 but kept a “hold” rating, reflecting a more cautious view than Wells Fargo’s. Overall, analysts remain moderately bullish even as Cigna has lagged some peers. Jefferies adjusts Cigna price target Wall Street outlook on Cigna

Cigna Group Company Profile

The Cigna Group is a global health services company that provides health insurance and related services through its Cigna Healthcare and Evernorth Health Services businesses. Cigna Healthcare offers medical, dental, behavioral health and other coverage and services to employers, individuals and government-program members. Evernorth provides pharmacy benefit management, specialty pharmacy, care delivery and other health services. Its offerings include prescription drug benefits and services for people with complex or chronic conditions.

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