(Bloomberg) -- Cigna Group shares jumped Thursday after Chief Executive Officer David Cordani signaled the company is focused on returning cash to shareholders through buybacks rather than a possible deal with Humana Inc.

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Cordani said the company planned to use extra free cash flow to repurchase shares in comments seemingly aimed to tamp down speculation about a big acquisition on the horizon. Cigna shares jumped as much as 9.4%, the most intraday since December, at the New York market open Thursday. Humana’s stock lost as much as 3.9%.

Bloomberg News reported this month that Cigna revived informal merger talks with Humana after discussions fell apart last year. Cordani didn’t comment directly on the potential deal, but he noted problems in the Medicare market, which have led to share declines at Humana, UnitedHealth Group Inc. and other companies that focus on that market.

Excess free cash flow will continue to be directed to share buybacks, Cordani said. The comment “suggests it is very unlikely” that Cigna will pursue a big Medicare-focused acquisition in the near term, Stephens analyst Scott Fidel wrote in a research note.

The company is exiting the private Medicare Advantage health plan business, where rising costs and stricter federal payment rules have dragged on rivals’ earnings. Cordani said he believes in the importance of the Medicare Advantage market in the long-term, however. “The space is just going through a choppy time right now,” he said.

He also said the company planned to grow earnings at least 10% next year.

Cigna’s third-quarter adjusted earnings were $7.51 a share, exceeding analysts’ average estimate. Revenue also came in above estimates, driven by new clients and growth in Cigna’s specialty pharmacy, the company said Thursday in a statement.

Averting Pressure

The results exclude a $1 billion non-cash investment loss related to VillageMD, the clinic business majority-owned by Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc.

The majority of Cigna’s revenue and profit come from its Evernorth division, which includes pharmacy benefits and other services. Growing adoption of lower-cost alternatives to AbbVie Inc.’s blockbuster drug Humira boosted profits, the company said.

Cigna has averted some of the pressures buffeting its largest competitors, and its shares have gained 4.5% this year through Wednesday’s close. The company is exiting the private Medicare Advantage health plan business, where rising costs and stricter federal payment rules have dragged on rivals’ earnings. In Cigna’s health insurance unit, a key gauge of medical expenses was in line with expectations.