Baird Financial Group Inc. Sells 5,041 Shares of Cencora, Inc. $COR

Key Points

• Baird Financial Group reduced its Cencora stake by 9.7%, selling 5,041 shares during the second quarter and retaining 46,920 shares valued at approximately $13.3 million.
• Institutional investors own 97.52% of Cencora, with major holders including California State Teachers Retirement System, BlackRock, State Street, T. Rowe Price and Geode Capital Management.
• Cencora reported quarterly earnings of $4.48 per share, exceeding estimates, while revenue rose 5.1% year over year to $84.75 billion. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $370.85, and the company approved a $2 billion share-repurchase program.

Baird Financial Group Inc. cut its position in shares of Cencora, Inc. (NYSE:COR - Free Report) by 9.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 46,920 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,041 shares during the quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Cencora were worth $13,277,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Cencora by 26,305.7% in the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 74,523,349 shares of the company's stock valued at $21,088,617,000 after acquiring an additional 74,241,125 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Cencora in the 2nd quarter valued at $5,154,136,000. State Street Corp grew its stake in Cencora by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,305,507 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,142,935,000 after purchasing an additional 115,191 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Cencora by 160.1% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,700,091 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,262,956,000 after purchasing an additional 4,123,795 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Cencora by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,459,476 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,843,268,000 after purchasing an additional 169,055 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.52% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Lauren M. Tyler bought 550 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 22nd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $270.23 per share, for a total transaction of $148,626.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 4,359 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,177,932.57. The trade was a 14.44% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Elizabeth Campbell sold 11,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $324.12, for a total value of $3,662,556.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 19,455 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,305,754.60. This represents a 36.74% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.38% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Cencora Price Performance

Cencora stock opened at $321.44 on Friday. Cencora, Inc. has a 52 week low of $244.82 and a 52 week high of $377.54. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $315.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $308.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.53. The stock has a market cap of $61.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.88, a PEG ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.57.

Cencora (NYSE:COR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $4.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.35 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $84.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $84.31 billion. Cencora had a return on equity of 125.45% and a net margin of 0.79%.The company's revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.00 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Cencora, Inc. will post 17.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cencora declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 21st that allows the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 3.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Cencora Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 14th were paid a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 14th. Cencora's payout ratio is currently 17.83%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on COR shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Cencora from $342.00 to $346.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Robert W. Baird set a $370.00 price objective on shares of Cencora in a report on Thursday, August 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Cencora from $382.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Evercore reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $350.00 target price on shares of Cencora in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Cencora from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $370.85.

About Cencora

Cencora, Inc NYSE: COR is a global healthcare company that provides pharmaceutical sourcing, distribution and related services. The company connects biopharmaceutical manufacturers with pharmacies, hospitals, health systems, physician practices and other healthcare providers, helping move prescription medicines and healthcare products through the supply chain.

Cencora's operations include pharmaceutical distribution, specialty pharmaceutical services, manufacturer support and patient-centered solutions.

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