Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Raises Stake in Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH)

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its holdings in shares of Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH) by 19.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 142,345 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 23,374 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA owned 0.06% of Cardinal Health worth $16,835,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Cardinal Health by 35.2% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 32,520 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,871,000 after purchasing an additional 8,471 shares during the period. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp raised its stake in shares of Cardinal Health by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 240,422 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,435,000 after buying an additional 3,576 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cardinal Health by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,749,859 shares of the company’s stock valued at $633,298,000 after buying an additional 42,082 shares during the period. Consolidated Planning Corp boosted its stake in shares of Cardinal Health by 40.0% in the fourth quarter. Consolidated Planning Corp now owns 8,926 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,056,000 after buying an additional 2,552 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Flputnam Investment Management Co. grew its holdings in Cardinal Health by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co. now owns 180,586 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,358,000 after acquiring an additional 3,148 shares during the period. 87.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Evercore ISI upgraded Cardinal Health from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $140.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target 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. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Cardinal Health from $136.00 to $142.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Cardinal Health from $120.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price target on Cardinal Health from $142.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.14.

Cardinal Health Stock Performance

Shares of CAH opened at $137.20 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $128.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $121.20. Cardinal Health, Inc. has a one year low of $93.17 and a one year high of $138.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.60, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.66.

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%. On average, analysts predict that Cardinal Health, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Cardinal Health Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.5056 per share. This represents a $2.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. Cardinal Health’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.69%.

Cardinal Health 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.