Empyrean Capital Partners LP Cuts Position in Cardinal Health, Inc. $CAH

Key Points

• Empyrean Capital Partners LP cut its Cardinal Health stake by 30.7% in the fourth quarter, selling 109,600 shares and ending with 247,800 shares valued at about $50.9 million.
• Cardinal Health reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $3.17 per share, topping estimates, while revenue came in at $60.94 billion and rose 11% year over year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.5158 per share and analysts remain broadly positive, with 14 Buy ratings, 3 Hold ratings, and a consensus price target of $246.93.

Empyrean Capital Partners LP lessened its position in shares of Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH - Free Report) by 30.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 247,800 shares of the company's stock after selling 109,600 shares during the quarter. Cardinal Health comprises 1.8% of Empyrean Capital Partners LP's portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Empyrean Capital Partners LP owned approximately 0.11% of Cardinal Health worth $50,923,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Cardinal Health by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 9,255 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,902,000 after buying an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. HF Advisory Group LLC grew its holdings in Cardinal Health by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. HF Advisory Group LLC now owns 5,227 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,074,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Cardinal Health by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,760 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,184,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR grew its holdings in Cardinal Health by 11.0% during the 4th quarter. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR now owns 513 shares of the company's stock valued at $105,000 after buying an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stephens Inc. AR grew its holdings in Cardinal Health by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 5,951 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,223,000 after buying an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.17% of the company's stock.

Cardinal Health Stock Performance

Shares of Cardinal Health stock opened at $226.29 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $53.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 0.52. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $204.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $209.11. Cardinal Health, Inc. has a one year low of $137.75 and a one year high of $233.60.

Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $3.17 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.79 by $0.38. Cardinal Health had a negative return on equity of 92.61% and a net margin of 0.62%.The firm had revenue of $60.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $62.10 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.35 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. Cardinal Health has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.700-10.80 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Cardinal Health, Inc. will post 10.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cardinal Health Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.5158 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 1st. This represents a $2.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. This is an increase from Cardinal Health's previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. Cardinal Health's dividend payout ratio is 31.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CAH has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Barclays raised their price target on Cardinal Health from $243.00 to $258.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. William Blair assumed coverage on Cardinal Health in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Cardinal Health from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Wall Street Zen cut Cardinal Health from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Cardinal Health from $256.00 to $245.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 1st. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $246.93.

Cardinal Health Company Profile

Cardinal Health is a multinational healthcare services and products company headquartered in Dublin, Ohio. Tracing its roots to the early 1970s, the company has grown into a major provider of supply chain and distribution services for the healthcare sector. Cardinal Health operates across a range of service lines that support hospitals, health systems, pharmacies, physician offices and clinical laboratories.

The company's core activities include the wholesale distribution of branded and generic pharmaceuticals, the supply and distribution of medical-surgical products, and the provision of logistics and inventory management solutions.

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