Royal Bank of Canada Grows Stock Holdings in Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH)

Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in shares of Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH - Free Report) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 744,599 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 10,315 shares during the quarter. Royal Bank of Canada owned about 0.31% of Cardinal Health worth $88,064,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Cardinal Health in the 4th quarter worth $246,748,000. Marshall Wace LLP grew its stake in shares of Cardinal Health by 154.6% during the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,151,736 shares of the company's stock worth $372,756,000 after purchasing an additional 1,913,892 shares during the period. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cardinal Health during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $141,963,000. Junto Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Cardinal Health during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $92,811,000. Finally, 8 Knots Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cardinal Health during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $62,476,000. 87.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Cardinal Health from $142.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Cardinal Health from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Cardinal Health in a report on Thursday, May 1st. StockNews.com raised shares of Cardinal Health from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Argus set a $148.00 price target on Cardinal Health in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Cardinal Health has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $146.43.

Cardinal Health Price Performance

NYSE CAH opened at $153.78 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $36.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.66. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $137.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $128.19. Cardinal Health, Inc. has a 1-year low of $93.17 and a 1-year high of $154.78.

Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $54.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.33 billion. Cardinal Health had a negative return on equity of 59.57% and a net margin of 0.59%. Cardinal Health's revenue was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.08 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Cardinal Health, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cardinal Health Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders 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 is an increase from Cardinal Health's previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.33%. Cardinal Health's payout ratio is currently 31.83%.

Cardinal Health Company Profile

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.

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