Westpac Banking Corp Takes Position in Cigna Group $CI

Westpac Banking Corp acquired a new stake in Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 1,827 shares of the health services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $504,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in Cigna Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Cigna Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Cigna Group during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Prosperity Bancshares Inc purchased a new position in shares of Cigna Group during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cigna Group by 161.9% in the first quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 110 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Jamie G. Kates sold 899 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $298.61, for a total transaction of $268,450.39. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,368 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $707,108.48. This trade represents a 27.52% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Nicole S. Jones sold 19,436 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.27, for a total value of $5,369,583.72. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 27,256 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,530,015.12. The trade was a 41.63% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 23,012 shares of company stock worth $6,386,550 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on CI shares. Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $315.00 price objective on shares of Cigna Group in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. Barclays upped their target price on Cigna Group from $304.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Wall Street Zen cut Cigna Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Cigna Group from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Cigna Group from $305.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Cigna Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $339.45.

Cigna Group Stock Performance

Cigna Group stock opened at $276.19 on Friday. Cigna Group has a fifty-two week low of $239.51 and a fifty-two week high of $315.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.76. The stock has a market cap of $72.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.29. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $284.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $281.38.

Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The health services provider reported $7.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.60 by $0.18. Cigna Group had a net margin of 2.27% and a return on equity of 19.75%. The company had revenue of $70.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $70.14 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $7.20 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Cigna Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 30.450- EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Cigna Group will post 30.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cigna Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be given a dividend of $1.56 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 8th. This represents a $6.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Cigna Group’s dividend payout ratio is 25.82%.

Cigna Group Profile

Cigna Group (NYSE: CI) is a global health services company that offers a broad portfolio of healthcare products and insurance solutions for individuals, employers, and governments. Its core businesses include medical and behavioral health plans, dental and vision coverage, pharmacy benefit management, and supplemental health products. Cigna serves a mix of commercial, Medicare, and Medicaid customers and provides workplace benefits such as group health plans and disability and life benefits for employers.

In addition to traditional insurance products, Cigna operates health services and care-delivery platforms designed to manage costs and improve outcomes.