Swiss National Bank Decreases Stock Position in Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH)

Swiss National Bank reduced its holdings in shares of Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH) by 5.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 683,600 shares of the company’s stock after selling 39,200 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in Cardinal Health were worth $80,849,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Cardinal Health by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 14,177,641 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,566,913,000 after buying an additional 627,253 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Cardinal Health during the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,115,000. Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its stake in Cardinal Health by 47.9% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 1,069,462 shares of the company’s stock worth $118,197,000 after purchasing an additional 346,362 shares in the last quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec boosted its holdings in Cardinal Health by 230.0% in the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 477,911 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,819,000 after purchasing an additional 333,095 shares during the period. Finally, Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Cardinal Health by 77.3% during the 3rd quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 593,007 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,539,000 after purchasing an additional 258,541 shares in the last quarter. 87.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cardinal Health Price Performance

Shares of CAH stock opened at $128.20 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $126.33 and a 200 day moving average of $119.31. Cardinal Health, Inc. has a 1-year low of $93.17 and a 1-year high of $132.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.97 billion, a PE ratio of 23.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.66.

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

Cardinal Health Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.5056 per share. This represents a $2.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. Cardinal Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.69%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAH has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Cardinal Health from $136.00 to $142.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Cardinal Health from $120.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Argus set a $148.00 target price on shares of Cardinal Health in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Cardinal Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $140.00 to $150.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Cardinal Health currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $139.36.

About Cardinal Health

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.