Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Has $4.14 Million Stake in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System lowered its holdings in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) by 4.5% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 15,000 shares of the health services provider’s stock after selling 700 shares during the quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System’s holdings in The Cigna Group were worth $4,142,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of The Cigna Group by 49,287.7% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 400,040 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $138,590,000 after purchasing an additional 399,230 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB increased its holdings in The Cigna Group by 55.1% during the fourth quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 884,406 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $244,220,000 after buying an additional 314,123 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in The Cigna Group by 2.0% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 14,230,397 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $4,929,978,000 after buying an additional 279,880 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates raised its position in The Cigna Group by 42.8% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 860,050 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $297,956,000 after acquiring an additional 257,711 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in The Cigna Group by 68.4% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 497,875 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $137,483,000 after acquiring an additional 202,161 shares during the last quarter. 86.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on CI. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of The Cigna Group from $403.00 to $379.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Stephens dropped their price objective on The Cigna Group from $410.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays cut their price objective on The Cigna Group from $420.00 to $339.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com lowered The Cigna Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald cut their price target on The Cigna Group from $400.00 to $350.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $373.69.

The Cigna Group Stock Performance

NYSE CI opened at $292.72 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $288.17 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $321.82. The Cigna Group has a 12-month low of $262.03 and a 12-month high of $370.83. The company has a market capitalization of $81.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.92, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The health services provider reported $6.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.84 by ($1.20). The Cigna Group had a net margin of 1.39% and a return on equity of 18.61%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $6.79 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that The Cigna Group will post 29.8 earnings per share for the current year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be issued a dividend of $1.51 per share. This is a positive change from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio is 45.75%.

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.