Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH) Raised to "Strong-Buy" at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Cardinal Health to “strong-buy” from “buy.” The broader analyst consensus is “Moderate Buy,” with 16 buy ratings, three holds, and an average price target of $266.56.
• Cardinal Health reported quarterly EPS of $2.91, beating estimates of $2.42, while revenue rose 5.8% year over year to $63.67 billion. Analysts expect approximately $12.55 in EPS for the current fiscal year.
• Insiders sold 210,271 shares worth about $49.6 million in the last quarter, while institutional investors own 87.17% of the company’s stock.

Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report issued on Sunday, Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $270.00 price objective on shares of Cardinal Health in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Cardinal Health from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Cardinal Health from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Cardinal Health from $274.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Cardinal Health from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $266.56.

Cardinal Health Price Performance

NYSE:CAH opened at $220.12 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $50.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.51. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $233.05 and its 200 day moving average price is $219.85. Cardinal Health has a 1-year low of $149.60 and a 1-year high of $258.30.

Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 11th. The company reported $2.91 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.42 by $0.49. Cardinal Health had a net margin of 0.67% and a negative return on equity of 98.53%. The company had revenue of $63.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $65.15 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.08 EPS. The business's revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. Cardinal Health has set its FY 2027 guidance at 12.400-12.600 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Cardinal Health will post 12.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Cardinal Health

In other Cardinal Health news, CEO Deborah Weitzman sold 7,354 shares of Cardinal Health stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.45, for a total value of $1,731,499.30. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 77,901 shares in the company, valued at $18,341,790.45. The trade was a 8.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Jessica Mayer sold 29,436 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,812,220.44. This represents a 47.09% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 210,271 shares of company stock worth $49,626,657 in the last quarter. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cardinal Health

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Cardinal Health by 176.8% in the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 167,009 shares of the company's stock valued at $39,675,000 after purchasing an additional 106,682 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its holdings in Cardinal Health by 73.1% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 17,879 shares of the company's stock worth $4,247,000 after buying an additional 7,553 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Altus USA Inc. acquired a new position in Cardinal Health in the 2nd quarter worth $55,000. National Pension Service boosted its position in Cardinal Health by 3.8% in the 2nd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 477,491 shares of the company's stock valued at $113,433,000 after buying an additional 17,492 shares during the last quarter. Finally, WINTON GROUP Ltd grew its stake in shares of Cardinal Health by 394.9% during the second quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd now owns 44,405 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,549,000 after acquiring an additional 35,432 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.17% of the company's stock.

About Cardinal Health

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.

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