Grunden Financial Advisory Inc. Invests $247,000 in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Grunden Financial Advisory Inc. bought a new position in shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund bought 824 shares of the health services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $247,000. The Cigna Group accounts for 0.1% of Grunden Financial Advisory Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest holding.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bogart Wealth LLC lifted its position in The Cigna Group by 104.5% in the 3rd quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 90 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in The Cigna Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new stake in The Cigna Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Fairfield Bush & CO. bought a new stake in The Cigna Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC lifted its position in The Cigna Group by 112.2% in the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 104 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. 86.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $392.00 price objective (up previously from $382.00) on shares of The Cigna Group in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Mizuho boosted their target price on The Cigna Group from $360.00 to $370.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Royal Bank of Canada raised The Cigna Group from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $327.00 to $354.00 in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on The Cigna Group from $334.00 to $348.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $360.00 target price on shares of The Cigna Group in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, The Cigna Group has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $362.14.

The Cigna Group Stock Performance

CI stock traded up $2.70 during trading on Thursday, reaching $348.78. The stock had a trading volume of 1,615,865 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,606,200. The Cigna Group has a 52 week low of $240.50 and a 52 week high of $365.71. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $347.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $314.79. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The firm has a market cap of $101.97 billion, a PE ratio of 19.89, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.56.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 2nd. The health services provider reported $6.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.54 by $0.25. The Cigna Group had a return on equity of 13.59% and a net margin of 2.64%. The firm had revenue of $51.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $48.91 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $4.96 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that The Cigna Group will post 28.36 earnings per share for the current year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 21st. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 6th were paid a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 5th. This is an increase from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.23. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.20%.

Insider Activity at The Cigna Group

In other The Cigna Group news, SVP Hoeltzel Mary T. Agoglia sold 4,867 shares of The Cigna Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $330.48, for a total value of $1,608,446.16. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 2,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $694,668.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO David Cordani sold 38,065 shares of The Cigna Group stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 329,321 shares in the company, valued at approximately $110,394,985.62. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Hoeltzel Mary T. Agoglia sold 4,867 shares of The Cigna Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $330.48, for a total value of $1,608,446.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $694,668.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 114,144 shares of company stock valued at $39,296,330. 0.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.