Cardinal Health, Inc. $CAH Stake Boosted by Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its position in shares of Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH) by 11.5% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 23,039 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,380 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Cardinal Health were worth $4,868,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CAH. Aventura Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cardinal Health in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. bought a new position in Cardinal Health during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new position in shares of Cardinal Health in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Indiana Trust & Investment Management Co bought a new position in shares of Cardinal Health in the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Palladiem LLC bought a new position in Cardinal Health in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. 87.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cardinal Health Stock Down 0.1%

CAH stock opened at $228.57 on Friday. Cardinal Health, Inc. has a twelve month low of $137.75 and a twelve month high of $243.21. The business’s fifty day moving average is $216.25 and its 200-day moving average is $213.76. The company has a market cap of $53.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.49.

Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $3.17 earnings per share (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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $62.10 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.35 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Cardinal Health has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.700-10.80 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Cardinal Health, Inc. will post 10.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cardinal Health Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 1st were given a $0.5158 dividend. The ex-dividend date was 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 currently 31.50%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on CAH. Evercore cut their price target on Cardinal Health from $260.00 to $240.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Cardinal Health from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 4th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Cardinal Health from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. William Blair started coverage on shares of Cardinal Health in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Cardinal Health from $256.00 to $245.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 1st. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Cardinal Health currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $249.13.

About Cardinal Health

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.