Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) Receives Consensus Rating of "Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Cigna Group has received a consensus recommendation of "Buy" from 20 research firms, with an average target price of $380.39 for the next 12 months.
• The company reported $7.20 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, with revenue up 11% year-over-year.
• Cigna Group has declared a quarterly dividend of $1.51, amounting to an annualized dividend yield of 2.3%.

Cigna Group (NYSE:CI - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average rating of "Buy" from the twenty ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $378.67.

CI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered Cigna Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Cigna Group from $379.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $388.00 target price on shares of Cigna Group in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $371.00 price objective on shares of Cigna Group in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Cigna Group in a report on Monday, May 5th.

Institutional Trading of Cigna Group

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of CI. Austin Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Cigna Group during the second quarter worth $352,000. James Investment Research Inc. grew its position in Cigna Group by 47.9% during the 2nd quarter. James Investment Research Inc. now owns 8,880 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $2,936,000 after purchasing an additional 2,876 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Cigna Group by 4.8% during the 2nd quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,826 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $604,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the period. Purkiss Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cigna Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $412,000. Finally, Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund boosted its stake in shares of Cigna Group by 20.2% during the 2nd quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 57,104 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $18,877,000 after acquiring an additional 9,600 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.99% of the company's stock.

Cigna Group Trading Down 1.9%

NYSE CI traded down $5.12 on Friday, hitting $262.26. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,428,214 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,636,711. Cigna Group has a 52-week low of $256.89 and a 52-week high of $370.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $309.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $312.08. The firm has a market cap of $70.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.32, a PEG ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.47.

Cigna Group (NYSE:CI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The health services provider reported $7.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.15 by $0.05. Cigna Group had a return on equity of 18.80% and a net margin of 1.92%. The firm had revenue of $67.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $62.61 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $6.72 EPS. The business's revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Cigna Group will post 29.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cigna Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 4th will be issued a $1.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 4th. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Cigna Group's payout ratio is presently 33.44%.

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.