Gradient Investments LLC Sells 20,539 Shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Gradient Investments LLC reduced its stake in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI - Free Report) by 17.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 95,597 shares of the health services provider's stock after selling 20,539 shares during the quarter. The Cigna Group makes up approximately 0.8% of Gradient Investments LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Gradient Investments LLC's holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $34,720,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC increased its position in The Cigna Group by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,280 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $464,000 after buying an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management increased its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 3.5% during the first quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management now owns 867 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $315,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its position in shares of The Cigna Group by 10.6% in the 1st quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 335 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $122,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN boosted its stake in The Cigna Group by 17.2% in the 1st quarter. First Financial Corp IN now owns 225 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $82,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Somerset Trust Co grew its position in The Cigna Group by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Somerset Trust Co now owns 2,209 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $802,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. 86.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CI has been the subject of several research reports. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of The Cigna Group from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $327.00 to $354.00 in a research note on Monday, February 5th. StockNews.com upgraded The Cigna Group from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $392.00 target price (up previously from $382.00) on shares of The Cigna Group in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of The Cigna Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $355.00 to $370.00 in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of The Cigna Group from $370.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, The Cigna Group presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $366.14.

The Cigna Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CI traded down $3.00 during trading on Friday, reaching $341.50. 2,413,548 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,380,653. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The Cigna Group has a fifty-two week low of $240.50 and a fifty-two week high of $365.71. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $350.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $319.59. The firm has a market cap of $99.84 billion, a PE ratio of 28.04, a P/E/G ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.57.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The health services provider reported $6.47 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $6.17 by $0.30. The Cigna Group had a return on equity of 17.24% and a net margin of 1.76%. The business had revenue of $57.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $56.59 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $5.41 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 23.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that The Cigna Group will post 28.4 earnings per share for the current year.

The Cigna Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 4th will be given a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 4th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.64%. The Cigna Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.98%.

Insider Transactions at The Cigna Group

In related news, CEO David Cordani sold 31,209 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.17, for a total value of $11,084,500.53. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 348,054 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $123,618,339.18. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, CEO David Cordani sold 31,209 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.17, for a total value of $11,084,500.53. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 348,054 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $123,618,339.18. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Eric P. Palmer sold 6,083 shares of The Cigna Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $340.00, for a total transaction of $2,068,220.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 44,649 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,180,660. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 114,144 shares of company stock valued at $39,296,330 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

The 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.

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