Shares of insurance giant Cigna Group are trading near an all-time high as the company builds a flat base with a fresh buy point. On Wednesday Cigna stock got an upgrade to its Relative Strength (RS) Rating, rising from 68 to 72.
The RS upgrade means Cigna stock tops 72% of all stocks on share price performance over the past year. The upgrade is welcome but doesn't fully reflect the stock's strengths. Amid rising profit and revenue growth, Bloomfield, Conn.-based Cigna boasts a 94 Earnings Per Share Rating out of 99. The 94 EPS Rating puts Cigna among the top 6% of companies for profit growth on a recent and long-term basis.
Cigna Stock Upgraded Amid 23% Profit Leap
Last quarter Cigna reported a 20% rise in earnings to a hefty $6.47 a share on a 23% hike in revenue to $57.3 billion. Its revenue growth rate rose every quarter over the past year, from 7% to 8%, 12% and then 23%. A nearly 25% rise in sales for a company Cigna's size shows unusual strength.
In the three quarters before the 20% EPS gain last quarter the company reported EPS declined 1% then rose 12% and 35%.
Cigna stock has an adequate 72 Composite Rating and a B SMR Rating (sales + profit margin + return on equity) on an A-to-E scale with A superb and E dismal. The B rating reflects its strong fundamentals.
One yellow flag is its E Accumulation/Distribution Rating on an A+ to E scale. The E rating shows that institutional investors like ETFs and insurance funds are selling more Cigna stock shares than buying. Look for that to improve to a C or better.
Cigna stock is building a flat base with a 365.71 buy point, which is also its all-time high, set on March 28. See if it can break out in heavy volume. Cigna stock was roughly flat Wednesday afternoon with its close on Tuesday.
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Cigna Partnering With Meal Kit Company
Cigna provides managed health care services through HMO, PPO, POS and indemnity programs to more than 20 million people. It's partnering with various organizations to make food a central part of keeping people healthy. In February, Cigna announced a partnership with meal kit company HelloFresh to offer discounts to as many as 12 million people, working under HelloFresh's Meals with Meaning program.
The exclusive RS Rating from Investor's Business Daily identifies market leadership with a 1 (worst) to 99 (best) score. The grade shows how a stock's price behavior over the last 52 weeks stacks up against all the other stocks in our database.
Cigna stock earns the No. 3 rank among its peers in the 13-stock Medical-Managed Care industry group. Elevance Health is the No. 1-ranked stock within the group.
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