First Trust Advisors LP Grows Position in Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH)

First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH) by 39.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 222,764 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 63,535 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in Cardinal Health were worth $26,346,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of CAH. Rothschild Investment LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cardinal Health by 10.1% in the fourth quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 858 shares of the company’s stock worth $101,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA raised its holdings in shares of Cardinal Health by 11.0% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 930 shares of the company’s stock worth $110,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC boosted its position in shares of Cardinal Health by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 3,479 shares of the company’s stock valued at $411,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. TIAA Trust National Association increased its position in Cardinal Health by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 2,183 shares of the company’s stock worth $258,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MWA Asset Management raised its stake in Cardinal Health by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. MWA Asset Management now owns 3,324 shares of the company’s stock valued at $393,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. 87.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cardinal Health Price Performance

Cardinal Health stock opened at $137.64 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $33.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.61. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $130.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $123.95. Cardinal Health, Inc. has a 1 year low of $93.17 and a 1 year high of $139.50.

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

Cardinal Health Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Cardinal Health from $135.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Cardinal Health from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Cardinal Health from $136.00 to $142.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Argus set a $148.00 price target on Cardinal Health in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Cardinal Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $140.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.86.

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.