Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. Acquires 5,100 Shares of Cencora, Inc. (NYSE:COR)

Key Points

• Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. increased its holdings in Cencora, Inc. by 6.1%, now owning 88,052 shares worth approximately $24.5 million, which makes up about 1.7% of their total portfolio.
• Cencora reported a quarterly EPS of $4.00, surpassing analysts' expectations of $3.79, with a revenue increase of 8.7% year-over-year, totaling $80.66 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.55 per share, reflecting a low payout ratio of 22.63%, signaling financial stability amid significant institutional ownership.

Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Cencora, Inc. (NYSE:COR - Free Report) by 6.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 88,052 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 5,100 shares during the quarter. Cencora comprises approximately 1.7% of Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd.'s portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest position. Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd.'s holdings in Cencora were worth $24,486,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Cencora by 106.7% during the first quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 93 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Cencora during the first quarter valued at $28,000. Costello Asset Management INC purchased a new stake in shares of Cencora during the first quarter valued at $28,000. Banque Transatlantique SA purchased a new stake in shares of Cencora during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Cencora during the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. 97.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on COR. Morgan Stanley set a $330.00 price objective on Cencora and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $354.00 price objective on Cencora and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. UBS Group increased their price objective on Cencora from $298.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Citigroup raised their target price on Cencora from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Cencora from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $311.25.

Insider Activity at Cencora

In related news, CEO Robert P. Mauch sold 4,968 shares of Cencora stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $294.11, for a total transaction of $1,461,138.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 42,351 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,455,852.61. This trade represents a 10.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman Steven H. Collis sold 14,579 shares of Cencora stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $292.62, for a total value of $4,266,106.98. Following the sale, the chairman directly owned 311,913 shares in the company, valued at $91,271,982.06. This trade represents a 4.47% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 34,125 shares of company stock worth $9,993,789 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 10.80% of the company's stock.

Cencora Price Performance

NYSE:COR traded up $4.16 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $295.20. 1,196,263 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,208,687. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.64. Cencora, Inc. has a 1 year low of $218.65 and a 1 year high of $309.35. The company has a market cap of $57.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.58. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $292.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $278.74.

Cencora (NYSE:COR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $4.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.79 by $0.21. Cencora had a net margin of 0.60% and a return on equity of 267.36%. The business had revenue of $80.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $80.34 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.34 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Cencora, Inc. will post 15.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cencora Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Cencora's payout ratio is currently 22.63%.

About Cencora

Cencora, Inc sources and distributes pharmaceutical products. The company's U.S. Healthcare Solutions segment distributes pharmaceuticals, over-the-counter healthcare products, home healthcare supplies and equipment, and related services to acute care hospitals and health systems, independent and chain retail pharmacies, mail order pharmacies, medical clinics, long-term care and alternate site pharmacies, and other customers; provides pharmacy management, staffing, and other consulting services; supply management software to retail and institutional healthcare providers; packaging solutions to various institutional and retail healthcare providers; clinical trial support, product post-approval, and commercialization support services; data analytics, outcomes research, and additional services for biotechnology and pharmaceutical manufacturers; pharmaceuticals, vaccines, parasiticides, diagnostics, micro feed ingredients, and other products to the companion animal and production animal markets; and sales force services to manufacturers.