Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Morgan Stanley Analyst Says

Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH - Free Report) had its price target boosted by Morgan Stanley from $166.00 to $181.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Cardinal Health from $175.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen raised Cardinal Health from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Cardinal Health from $157.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday. Bank of America upped their target price on Cardinal Health from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Cardinal Health from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $157.43.

Cardinal Health Stock Up 0.5%

NYSE CAH traded up $0.76 on Friday, reaching $161.28. The company had a trading volume of 2,722,179 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,227,826. The stock's 50 day moving average is $146.04 and its 200-day moving average is $132.62. The stock has a market cap of $38.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.09, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.66. Cardinal Health has a 52 week low of $93.17 and a 52 week high of $162.94.

Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.20. Cardinal Health had a negative return on equity of 59.57% and a net margin of 0.59%. The business had revenue of $54.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.33 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.08 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Cardinal Health will post 7.95 EPS for the current year.

Cardinal Health Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be given a dividend of $0.5107 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 1st. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.27%. This is an increase from Cardinal Health's previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. Cardinal Health's dividend payout ratio is currently 31.83%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cardinal Health

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Essex Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Cardinal Health in the 4th quarter valued at $213,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Cardinal Health by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 122,635 shares of the company's stock worth $14,611,000 after buying an additional 1,105 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its holdings in Cardinal Health by 31.4% during the 4th quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 67,519 shares of the company's stock worth $7,985,000 after buying an additional 16,125 shares during the period. First Merchants Corp acquired a new position in Cardinal Health during the 4th quarter worth about $252,000. Finally, New York State Teachers Retirement System lifted its holdings in Cardinal Health by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 234,442 shares of the company's stock worth $27,727,000 after buying an additional 10,308 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.17% of the company's stock.

About Cardinal Health

Cardinal Health, Inc operates as a healthcare services and products company in the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia, and internationally. It provides customized solutions for hospitals, healthcare systems, pharmacies, ambulatory surgery centers, clinical laboratories, physician offices, and patients in the home.