Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH) Sets New 1-Year High – What’s Next?

Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $133.01 and last traded at $132.62, with a volume of 199689 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $132.12.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Cardinal Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $140.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Cardinal Health from $142.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Cardinal Health from $135.00 to $136.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Cardinal Health from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $132.00 to $145.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Cardinal Health from $120.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $139.36.

Cardinal Health Trading Up 0.5 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $32.08 billion, a PE ratio of 24.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.66. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $126.94 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $119.78.

Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by $0.19. Cardinal Health had a net margin of 0.59% and a negative return on equity of 59.57%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Cardinal Health, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cardinal Health Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a $0.5056 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $2.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.52%. Cardinal Health’s payout ratio is currently 37.69%.

Institutional Trading of Cardinal Health

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CAH. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC purchased a new position in Cardinal Health in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Promus Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cardinal Health in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Bellwether Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cardinal Health in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Cardinal Health in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Cardinal Health in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.17% of the company’s stock.

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.