Alliancebernstein L.P. Sells 446,467 Shares of Cigna Group $CI

Key Points

• Alliancebernstein L.P. has reduced its stake in Cigna Group by 58%, selling 446,467 shares and now holding 323,811 shares valued at approximately $106.5 million.
• Multiple institutional investors have also adjusted their positions in Cigna, with Deutsche Bank AG increasing its stake by 14.5%, now owning nearly 1.5 million shares valued at $411.7 million.
• Cigna Group reported a strong financial performance, with earnings of $7.20 per share that beat analyst estimates, as well as revenue of $67.13 billion for the quarter, reflecting an increase of 11% year-over-year.

Alliancebernstein L.P. lessened its holdings in Cigna Group (NYSE:CI - Free Report) by 58.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 323,811 shares of the health services provider's stock after selling 446,467 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned 0.12% of Cigna Group worth $106,534,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CI. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in Cigna Group by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,736 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $1,032,000 after purchasing an additional 318 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its stake in shares of Cigna Group by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 2,158 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $596,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main grew its stake in shares of Cigna Group by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 6,185 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $1,708,000 after acquiring an additional 399 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG grew its stake in shares of Cigna Group by 14.5% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 1,490,904 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $411,698,000 after acquiring an additional 188,422 shares during the period. Finally, Fullcircle Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Cigna Group during the 4th quarter worth $200,000. Institutional investors own 86.99% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on CI. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $371.00 target price on shares of Cigna Group in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Barclays raised their target price on Cigna Group from $354.00 to $383.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday. TD Cowen upgraded Cigna Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and issued a $350.00 target price (down previously from $388.00) on shares of Cigna Group in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $365.00 target price on shares of Cigna Group in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Cigna Group presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $374.76.

Cigna Group Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of CI opened at $305.28 on Friday. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $297.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $311.98. The company has a market capitalization of $81.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.66, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.71. Cigna Group has a 1-year low of $256.89 and a 1-year high of $370.83.

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 for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $7.15 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $67.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $62.61 billion. Cigna Group had a net margin of 1.92% and a return on equity of 18.80%. Cigna Group's quarterly revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $6.72 earnings per share. Cigna Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 29.600- EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Cigna Group will post 29.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cigna Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 4th will be paid a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 4th. Cigna Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.97%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Nicole S. Jones sold 28,526 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $8,557,800.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 25,648 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,694,400. This trade represents a 52.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.