Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Increases Stake in Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH)

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC raised its stake in Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH) by 5.7% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 255,464 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,696 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC’s holdings in Cardinal Health were worth $35,195,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CAH. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Cardinal Health by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,859,132 shares of the company’s stock worth $691,145,000 after buying an additional 109,273 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Cardinal Health by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,182,514 shares of the company’s stock worth $376,396,000 after acquiring an additional 140,368 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in Cardinal Health by 154.6% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,151,736 shares of the company’s stock worth $372,756,000 after acquiring an additional 1,913,892 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Cardinal Health by 16.2% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,037,849 shares of the company’s stock valued at $359,286,000 after acquiring an additional 422,755 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in shares of Cardinal Health by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,321,797 shares of the company’s stock valued at $274,599,000 after acquiring an additional 94,768 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.17% of the company’s stock.

Cardinal Health Stock Up 0.4%

CAH opened at $154.68 on Friday. Cardinal Health, Inc. has a 52 week low of $93.17 and a 52 week high of $157.82. The stock has a market cap of $36.92 billion, a PE ratio of 28.86, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.66. The business has a 50 day moving average of $143.52 and a 200-day moving average of $131.51.

Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.20. Cardinal Health had a negative return on equity of 59.57% and a net margin of 0.59%. The business had revenue of $54.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.33 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.08 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Cardinal Health, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current year.

Cardinal Health Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be paid a $0.5107 dividend. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.32%. This is a positive change from Cardinal Health’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 1st. Cardinal Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.83%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAH has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Cardinal Health in a report on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group upped their price target on Cardinal Health from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Cardinal Health from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Cardinal Health from $142.00 to $166.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on Cardinal Health from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Cardinal Health has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $149.50.

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.