New York State Common Retirement Fund Sells 35,712 Shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

New York State Common Retirement Fund reduced its position in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI - Free Report) by 5.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 591,052 shares of the health services provider's stock after selling 35,712 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned approximately 0.20% of The Cigna Group worth $176,991,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Parnassus Investments LLC bought a new position in The Cigna Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $731,041,000. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in The Cigna Group by 13.8% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 15,967,363 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $4,567,783,000 after purchasing an additional 1,939,554 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its holdings in The Cigna Group by 1,039.4% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 590,063 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $176,694,000 after buying an additional 538,274 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in The Cigna Group by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 11,833,753 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $3,385,282,000 after buying an additional 345,605 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of The Cigna Group by 127.3% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 566,233 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $169,558,000 after acquiring an additional 317,081 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.99% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at The Cigna Group

In other The Cigna Group news, CEO David Cordani sold 38,065 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.22, for a total value of $12,760,149.30. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 329,321 shares of the company's stock, valued at $110,394,985.62. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Eric P. Palmer sold 6,083 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $340.00, for a total value of $2,068,220.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 44,649 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,180,660. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO David Cordani sold 38,065 shares of The Cigna Group stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.22, for a total value of $12,760,149.30. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 329,321 shares in the company, valued at $110,394,985.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 114,144 shares of company stock worth $39,296,330. 0.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

The Cigna Group Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:CI traded up $0.79 during trading on Monday, reaching $353.18. 1,143,649 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,599,661. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $348.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $316.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.67. The Cigna Group has a 52-week low of $240.50 and a 52-week high of $365.71. The stock has a market cap of $103.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.56.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 2nd. The health services provider reported $6.79 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.54 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $51.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $48.91 billion. The Cigna Group had a return on equity of 13.59% and a net margin of 2.64%. The Cigna Group's revenue was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $4.96 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that The Cigna Group will post 28.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 21st. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 6th were issued a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 5th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.59%. This is a positive change from The Cigna Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.23. The Cigna Group's payout ratio is presently 32.20%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CI has been the subject of several analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $384.00 price target on shares of The Cigna Group in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of The Cigna Group from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price target for the company from $327.00 to $354.00 in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Barclays started coverage on The Cigna Group in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $393.00 price target on the stock. Oppenheimer reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $360.00 target price on shares of The Cigna Group in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of The Cigna Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $330.00 to $372.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $362.14.

About The 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.

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