The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) to Issue Dividend Increase – $1.51 Per Share

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) announced a quarterly dividend on Friday, January 31st,Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be given a dividend of 1.51 per share by the health services provider on Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. This is a boost from The Cigna Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40.

The Cigna Group has increased its dividend by an average of 11.9% per year over the last three years. The Cigna Group has a dividend payout ratio of 15.9% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect The Cigna Group to earn $31.60 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $5.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 17.7%.

The Cigna Group Stock Performance

NYSE:CI opened at $293.99 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $294.40 and its 200-day simple moving average is $324.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The stock has a market cap of $81.77 billion, a PE ratio of 27.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.54. The Cigna Group has a fifty-two week low of $262.03 and a fifty-two week high of $370.83.

The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The health services provider reported $6.64 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.84 by ($1.20). The Cigna Group had a return on equity of 18.42% and a net margin of 1.31%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $6.79 EPS. Analysts expect that The Cigna Group will post 28.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on CI. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on The Cigna Group from $403.00 to $379.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on The Cigna Group from $398.00 to $394.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $394.00 price objective (up from $392.00) on shares of The Cigna Group in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of The Cigna Group from $384.00 to $377.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of The Cigna Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, The Cigna Group has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $380.27.

About The Cigna Group

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.