Analysts Set Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH) Target Price at $266.56

Shares of Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nineteen brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $266.5625.

CAH has been the topic of several recent research reports. Leerink Partners set a $292.00 price target on Cardinal Health in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Cardinal Health from $245.00 to $277.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Mizuho increased their target price on Cardinal Health from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Zacks Research cut Cardinal Health from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Cardinal Health from $258.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 13th.

Cardinal Health Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of CAH stock opened at $224.95 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $52.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.11, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.51. Cardinal Health has a 12 month low of $145.87 and a 12 month high of $258.30. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $233.74 and a 200 day moving average price of $219.86.

Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 11th. The company reported $2.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.42 by $0.49. The company had revenue of $63.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $65.15 billion. Cardinal Health had a net margin of 0.67% and a negative return on equity of 98.53%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.08 EPS. Cardinal Health has set its FY 2027 guidance at 12.400-12.600 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Cardinal Health will post 12.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cardinal Health Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.5158 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 1st. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Cardinal Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.49%.

Insider Activity

In other Cardinal Health news, CEO Stephen M. Mason sold 35,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.40, for a total value of $8,274,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 18,061 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,269,620.40. This trade represents a 65.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Jessica L. Mayer sold 29,436 shares of Cardinal Health stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.19, for a total transaction of $6,952,488.84. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 33,076 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,812,220.44. This represents a 47.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 210,271 shares of company stock valued at $49,626,657. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in shares of Cardinal Health in the 2nd quarter valued at about $308,640,000. First Nebraska Trust Co purchased a new stake in Cardinal Health during the second quarter valued at approximately $20,050,000. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cardinal Health in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,177,000. Stack Financial Management Inc bought a new stake in shares of Cardinal Health in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $24,681,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Cardinal Health by 52.9% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 33,939 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,172,000 after purchasing an additional 11,740 shares during the period. 87.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cardinal Health Company Profile

Cardinal Health, Inc is a healthcare services and products company that supports the pharmaceutical and medical industries. Its Pharmaceutical and Specialty Solutions segment distributes branded, generic and specialty pharmaceuticals, over-the-counter products and consumer health items to pharmacies, hospitals, health systems and other healthcare providers. The segment also provides specialty pharmaceutical services, nuclear and radiopharmaceutical products, and related support for manufacturers and providers.

Through its Global Medical Products and Distribution segment, Cardinal Health manufactures, sources and distributes medical and surgical products, including gloves, gowns, syringes, exam-room supplies and other essential equipment.