Schechter Investment Advisors LLC Sells 384 Shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Schechter Investment Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 9.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 3,772 shares of the health services provider’s stock after selling 384 shares during the quarter. Schechter Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $1,130,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of CI. Aristotle Atlantic Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 24.3% in the second quarter. Aristotle Atlantic Partners LLC now owns 112,541 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $31,579,000 after purchasing an additional 22,014 shares during the period. Accurate Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,244,000. Dfpg Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 92.0% in the fourth quarter. Dfpg Investments LLC now owns 7,160 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $2,174,000 after purchasing an additional 3,430 shares during the period. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 1.5% in the third quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC now owns 444,817 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $127,249,000 after purchasing an additional 6,365 shares during the period. Finally, Perpetual Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 15.7% in the third quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 132,461 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $37,893,000 after purchasing an additional 17,925 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

The Cigna Group Price Performance

NYSE CI opened at $363.38 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $332.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $307.08. The Cigna Group has a 1 year low of $240.50 and a 1 year high of $364.71. The company has a market cap of $106.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.90, a PEG ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.55.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 2nd. The health services provider reported $6.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 the consensus estimate of $48.91 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $4.96 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Cigna Group will post 28.36 earnings per share for the current year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 6th were given a dividend of $1.40 per share. This is an increase from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.23. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 5th. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.20%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other The Cigna Group news, CEO David Cordani sold 38,065 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.22, for a total transaction of $12,760,149.30. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 329,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $110,394,985.62. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CEO David Cordani sold 38,065 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.22, for a total transaction of $12,760,149.30. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 329,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $110,394,985.62. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Eric P. Palmer sold 1,017 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.26, for a total transaction of $340,959.42. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 45,564 shares in the company, valued at $15,275,786.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 114,144 shares of company stock valued at $39,296,330. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on CI. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and set a $360.00 target price on shares of The Cigna Group in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Barclays began coverage on The Cigna Group in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $393.00 target price for the company. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded The Cigna Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $330.00 to $372.00 in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on The Cigna Group from $334.00 to $348.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded The Cigna Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $355.00 to $370.00 in a report on Thursday, February 1st. 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, The Cigna Group presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $361.29.

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.