Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. Buys 3,539 Shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. grew its stake in shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 61.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,307 shares of the health services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,539 shares during the period. The Cigna Group comprises approximately 1.1% of Roman Butler Fullerton & Co.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co.’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $2,772,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of CI. Bogart Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of The Cigna Group by 104.5% during the third quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 90 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Fairfield Bush & CO. bought a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new position in The Cigna Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Optimum Investment Advisors increased its holdings in The Cigna Group by 110.0% during the third quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 105 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Eric P. Palmer sold 1,017 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.26, for a total transaction of $340,959.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 45,564 shares in the company, valued at $15,275,786.64. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CEO David Cordani sold 38,065 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 329,321 shares in the company, valued at $110,394,985.62. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Eric P. Palmer sold 1,017 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.26, for a total transaction of $340,959.42. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 45,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,275,786.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 114,144 shares of company stock valued at $39,296,330 over the last ninety days. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

The Cigna Group Stock Up 1.7 %

NYSE CI traded up $5.89 on Thursday, hitting $351.97. The stock had a trading volume of 346,518 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,587,765. The stock has a market cap of $102.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.56. 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 Cigna Group has a 52-week low of $240.50 and a 52-week high of $365.71. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $347.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $314.79.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last announced 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 firm had revenue of $51.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $48.91 billion. The Cigna Group had a net margin of 2.64% and a return on equity of 13.59%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.96 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that The Cigna Group will post 28.36 earnings per share for the current year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on CI shares. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of The Cigna Group from $360.00 to $370.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of The Cigna Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $330.00 to $372.00 in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of The Cigna Group from $334.00 to $348.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $384.00 price objective on shares of The Cigna Group in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of The Cigna Group from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $327.00 to $354.00 in a report on Monday, February 5th. Two investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $362.14.

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.