Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. Purchases Shares of 1,550 The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI)

Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. purchased a new stake in shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 1,550 shares of the health services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $428,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in CI. Adero Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Cigna Group by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Adero Partners LLC now owns 788 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $273,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 3.0% in the third quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 1,219 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $422,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. grew its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. now owns 1,883 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $520,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Smithfield Trust Co grew its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 3.6% in the third quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 1,080 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $373,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jacobi Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of The Cigna Group by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 1,749 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $483,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

The Cigna Group Trading Up 1.9 %

NYSE:CI opened at $308.66 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $85.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.22, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.54. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $289.54 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $318.63. The Cigna Group has a 1 year low of $262.03 and a 1 year high of $370.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.72.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last posted its 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 return on equity of 18.61% and a net margin of 1.39%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $6.79 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that The Cigna Group will post 29.77 EPS for the current year.

The Cigna Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be given a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. This is an increase from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.35%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CI has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on The Cigna Group from $398.00 to $394.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on The Cigna Group from $403.00 to $379.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada set a $355.00 target price on The Cigna Group in a report on Friday, January 31st. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their price objective 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. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on The Cigna Group from $420.00 to $339.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $372.31.

The Cigna Group 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.