Cigna ends Humana merger talks, plans big stock buyback, WSJ reports

Cigna (CI) abandoned its pursuit of a tie-up with Humana (HUM) that would have created a roughly $140B giant in the health-insurance industry, The Wall Street Journal’s Lauren Thomas reports. The companies couldn’t come to agreement on price and other financial terms, according to people familiar with the matter. In the near-term, Cigna is turning its focus toward smaller, so-called bolt-on, acquisitions, the author writes, adding that Cigna plans an additional $10B of stock buybacks, bringing its total planned repurchases to $11.3B.