Do Cigna's (NYSE:CI) Earnings Warrant Your Attention?

Some have more dollars than sense, they say, so even companies that have no revenue, no profit, and a record of falling short, can easily find investors. But the reality is that when a company loses money each year, for long enough, its investors will usually take their share of those losses.

If, on the other hand, you like companies that have revenue, and even earn profits, then you may well be interested in Cigna (NYSE:CI). While profit is not necessarily a social good, it's easy to admire a business than can consistently produce it. Conversely, a loss-making company is yet to prove itself with profit, and eventually the sweet milk of external capital may run sour.

See our latest analysis for Cigna

How Fast Is Cigna Growing?

As one of my mentors once told me, share price follows earnings per share (EPS). That makes EPS growth an attractive quality for any company. It certainly is nice to see that Cigna has managed to grow EPS by 18% per year over three years. As a general rule, we'd say that if a company can keep up that sort of growth, shareholders will be smiling.

Careful consideration of revenue growth and earnings before interest and taxation (EBIT) margins can help inform a view on the sustainability of the recent profit growth. I note that Cigna's revenue from operations was lower than its revenue in the last twelve months, so that could distort my analysis of its margins. On the one hand, Cigna's EBIT margins fell over the last year, but on the other hand, revenue grew. So it seems the future my hold further growth, especially if EBIT margins can stabilize.

In the chart below, you can see how the company has grown earnings, and revenue, over time. For finer detail check this interactive graph.

Of course the knack is to find stocks that have their best days in the future, not in the past. You could base your opinion on past performance, of course, but you may also want to check this interactive graph of professional analyst EPS forecasts for Cigna.

Are Cigna Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders?

Like the kids in the streets standing up for their beliefs, insider share purchases give me reason to believe in a brighter future. That's because insider buying often indicates that those closest to the company have confidence that the share price will perform well. However, insiders are sometimes wrong, and we don't know the exact thinking behind their acquisitions.

Although we did see some insider selling (worth -US$3.6m) this was overshadowed by a mountain of buying, totalling US$5.4m in just one year. I find this encouraging because it suggests they are optimistic about the Cigna's future. Zooming in, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by President David Cordani for US$5.0m worth of shares, at about US$155 per share.

The good news, alongside the insider buying, for Cigna bulls is that insiders (collectively) have a meaningful investment in the stock. Notably, they have an enormous stake in the company, worth US$199m. This suggests to me that leadership will be very mindful of shareholders' interests when making decisions!

Should You Add Cigna To Your Watchlist?

Given my belief that share price follows earnings per share you can easily imagine how I feel about Cigna's strong EPS growth. Not only that, but we can see that insiders both own a lot of, and are buying more, shares in the company. So it's fair to say I think this stock may well deserve a spot on your watchlist. While we've looked at the quality of the earnings, we haven't yet done any work to value the stock. So if you like to buy cheap, you may want to check if Cigna is trading on a high P/E or a low P/E, relative to its industry.

The good news is that Cigna is not the only growth stock with insider buying. Here's a list of them... with insider buying in the last three months!

Please note the insider transactions discussed in this article refer to reportable transactions in the relevant jurisdiction

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.

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