Employees Provident Fund Board Purchases Shares of 76,000 Cigna Group $CI

Key Points

• Employees Provident Fund Board opened a new position in Cigna Group during the fourth quarter, buying 76,000 shares worth about $20.9 million.
• Cigna reported strong quarterly results, with earnings of $7.79 per share and revenue of $68.52 billion, both above analyst expectations and up from a year earlier.
• The company also paid a quarterly dividend of $1.56 per share and currently yields about 2.2%, while analysts maintain a Moderate Buy consensus with an average price target of $338.30.

Employees Provident Fund Board bought a new position in Cigna Group (NYSE:CI - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 76,000 shares of the health services provider's stock, valued at approximately $20,917,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Reflection Asset Management purchased a new stake in Cigna Group in the 4th quarter worth about $70,000. CFO Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cigna Group during the fourth quarter worth about $243,000. Kera Capital Partners Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Cigna Group by 48.3% during the 4th quarter. Kera Capital Partners Inc. now owns 1,431 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $392,000 after acquiring an additional 466 shares during the last quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Cigna Group in the 4th quarter worth about $178,000. Finally, Cambient Family Office LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cigna Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,109,000. 86.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cigna Group Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE CI opened at $279.63 on Friday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $283.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $278.33. Cigna Group has a 12-month low of $239.51 and a 12-month high of $338.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $73.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Cigna Group (NYSE:CI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The health services provider reported $7.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $7.60 by $0.19. Cigna Group had a net margin of 2.26% and a return on equity of 19.75%. The business had revenue of $68.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $66.29 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $6.74 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Cigna Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 30.350- EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Cigna Group will post 30.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cigna Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 4th were given a $1.56 dividend. This represents a $6.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 4th. Cigna Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 26.45%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on CI shares. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on Cigna Group from $333.00 to $337.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of Cigna Group from $333.00 to $330.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Barclays downgraded shares of Cigna Group from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $310.00 to $304.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Guggenheim increased their target price on Cigna Group from $334.00 to $338.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Cigna Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $303.00 to $302.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $338.30.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO David Cordani sold 201,878 shares of Cigna Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $292.82, for a total value of $59,113,915.96. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 34,337 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,054,560.34. The trade was a 85.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Jamie G. Kates sold 899 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $298.61, for a total value of $268,450.39. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,368 shares in the company, valued at approximately $707,108.48. The trade was a 27.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Cigna Group Profile

Cigna Group NYSE: CI is a global health services company that offers a broad portfolio of healthcare products and insurance solutions for individuals, employers, and governments. Its core businesses include medical and behavioral health plans, dental and vision coverage, pharmacy benefit management, and supplemental health products. Cigna serves a mix of commercial, Medicare, and Medicaid customers and provides workplace benefits such as group health plans and disability and life benefits for employers.

In addition to traditional insurance products, Cigna operates health services and care-delivery platforms designed to manage costs and improve outcomes.

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