Sector Gamma AS Increases Stake in Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH)

Sector Gamma AS lifted its holdings in shares of Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH) by 6.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 376,701 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 22,829 shares during the period. Cardinal Health accounts for about 6.9% of Sector Gamma AS’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest position. Sector Gamma AS owned 0.15% of Cardinal Health worth $28,441,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Delta Asset Management LLC TN bought a new position in Cardinal Health in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. bought a new position in Cardinal Health in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Retirement Group LLC boosted its holdings in Cardinal Health by 1,539.3% in the fourth quarter. Retirement Group LLC now owns 459 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 431 shares during the last quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC bought a new position in Cardinal Health in the first quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, ICA Group Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Cardinal Health in the fourth quarter valued at about $41,000. Institutional investors own 86.01% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on CAH shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Cardinal Health from $93.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 16th. StockNews.com began coverage on Cardinal Health in a research note on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “strong-buy” rating on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on Cardinal Health from $88.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Monday, May 8th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Cardinal Health from $107.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 16th. Finally, Credit Suisse Group raised their price target on Cardinal Health from $90.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, June 12th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $94.69.

Cardinal Health Price Performance

CAH stock traded down $0.71 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $87.33. The company had a trading volume of 2,364,205 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,385,776. Cardinal Health, Inc. has a 52 week low of $64.99 and a 52 week high of $95.45. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $91.78 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $84.10. The company has a market capitalization of $21.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 88.93, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.78.

Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 15th. The company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.49 by $0.06. Cardinal Health had a negative return on equity of 67.01% and a net margin of 0.13%. The company had revenue of $53.45 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $52.72 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.05 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Cardinal Health, Inc. will post 6.66 EPS for the current year.

Cardinal Health Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 3rd will be paid a $0.5006 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 2nd. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.29%. Cardinal Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 202.02%.

Insider Activity at Cardinal Health

In related news, CEO Stephen M. Mason sold 37,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.32, for a total value of $3,274,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 37,355 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,261,838.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, insider Jessica L. Mayer sold 30,145 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.84, for a total value of $2,738,371.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 95,533 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,678,217.72. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Stephen M. Mason sold 37,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.32, for a total value of $3,274,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 37,355 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,261,838.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 95,052 shares of company stock worth $8,401,034 in the last ninety days. 0.17% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.