Candriam S.C.A. Purchases 96,750 Shares of Cigna Group $CI

Key Points

• Candriam S.C.A. raised its stake in Cigna Group by 125.8% during Q1, owning 173,631 shares valued at approximately $57.1 million.
• Insider Nicole S. Jones sold 28,526 shares of Cigna Group for over $8.5 million, resulting in a 52.66% decrease in her holdings.
• Cigna Group's recent quarterly earnings showed a profit of $7.20 per share, exceeding expectations, and the company reported revenue of $67.13 billion, marking an 11% year-over-year increase.

Candriam S.C.A. raised its holdings in Cigna Group (NYSE:CI - Free Report) by 125.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 173,631 shares of the health services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 96,750 shares during the quarter. Candriam S.C.A. owned about 0.06% of Cigna Group worth $57,125,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Aspire Growth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Cigna Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $253,000. Capital Analysts LLC lifted its stake in Cigna Group by 8.1% in the first quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 13,378 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $4,401,000 after acquiring an additional 1,007 shares during the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH lifted its stake in Cigna Group by 28.6% in the first quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH now owns 66,158 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $21,536,000 after acquiring an additional 14,694 shares during the last quarter. Humankind Investments LLC lifted its stake in Cigna Group by 7.2% in the first quarter. Humankind Investments LLC now owns 5,673 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $1,866,000 after acquiring an additional 379 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Cigna Group by 2.9% in the first quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 1,400 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $461,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. 86.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on CI shares. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Cigna Group from $348.00 to $374.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Cigna Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $371.00 price objective on shares of Cigna Group in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Robert W. Baird set a $372.00 price objective on shares of Cigna Group in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $415.00 price objective on shares of Cigna Group and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $374.82.

Insider Transactions at Cigna Group

In related news, insider Nicole S. Jones sold 28,526 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $8,557,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 25,648 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,694,400. This represents a 52.66% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

Cigna Group Trading Up 1.1%

Cigna Group stock traded up $3.1890 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $304.1390. 1,127,473 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,135,227. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.71. Cigna Group has a fifty-two week low of $256.89 and a fifty-two week high of $370.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $81.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.60, a PEG ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.47. The firm's 50 day moving average is $300.91 and its 200-day moving average is $311.39.

Cigna Group (NYSE:CI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The health services provider reported $7.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $7.15 by $0.05. The company 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%. The company's revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $6.72 EPS. Cigna Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 29.600- EPS. On average, analysts predict that Cigna Group will post 29.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Cigna Group Announces Dividend

The firm 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 dividend of $1.51 per share. 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 is presently 32.97%.

About Cigna Group

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.