Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH) Hits New 52-Week High After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Posted by Brenda Bartman on Aug 13th, 2026

Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH – Get Free Report)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as high as $258.30 and last traded at $240.0820, with a volume of 3007342 shares. The stock had previously closed at $237.18.

The company reported $2.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.42 by $0.49. Cardinal Health had a negative return on equity of 98.74% and a net margin of 0.67%.The company had revenue of $63.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $65.15 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.08 earnings per share. Cardinal Health’s revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Cardinal Health has set its FY 2027 guidance at 12.400-12.600 EPS.

Cardinal Health Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.5158 per share. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 1st. Cardinal Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.50%.

Key Cardinal Health News

Here are the key news stories impacting Cardinal Health this week:

Positive Sentiment: Cardinal Health reported fourth-quarter adjusted EPS of $2.91, well above the $2.42 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 6% year over year to $63.7 billion. Profit growth was supported by pharmaceutical and specialty-drug demand, as well as nearly doubled medical technology profits. Cardinal Health Reports Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2026 Results and Provides Fiscal Year 2027 Guidance
Positive Sentiment: Fiscal 2027 adjusted EPS guidance of $12.40 to $12.60 implies 13% to 15% growth and exceeds Wall Street expectations, with specialty pharmaceuticals, At-Home solutions, normalized pharmaceutical demand and execution identified as key growth drivers. CAH Q4 Earnings Call Centers on Fiscal 2027 Growth Outlook
Positive Sentiment: The board authorized an additional $5 billion for share repurchases after $1.4 billion of fiscal 2026 buybacks. Citi, Wells Fargo and Baird also raised their price targets to $280, $277 and $274, respectively, maintaining bullish ratings.
Neutral Sentiment: Cardinal Health declared a quarterly dividend of $0.5158 per share, payable October 15, supporting its long record of dividend growth, although the approximately 0.9% yield offers limited income appeal. Cardinal Health Board of Directors Approves Quarterly Dividend
Negative Sentiment: Revenue fell short of expectations of roughly $65.1 billion, and part of the EPS beat reflected a one-time $0.31-per-share tariff refund. With CAH trading near its 52-week high at a relatively elevated earnings multiple, investors may be taking profits and questioning whether continued execution must be nearly perfect to justify further gains. Cardinal Health Earnings: Can Perfection Get Priced In Twice?

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on CAH shares. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Cardinal Health from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Cardinal Health from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Cardinal Health from $243.00 to $215.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $270.00 target price on shares of Cardinal Health in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on Cardinal Health from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $261.47.

Check Out Our Latest Analysis on Cardinal Health

Institutional Trading of Cardinal Health

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS lifted its holdings in shares of Cardinal Health by 100.8% during the 4th quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS now owns 18,164 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,733,000 after acquiring an additional 9,120 shares during the period. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC bought a new position in Cardinal Health in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $7,182,000. Byrne Financial Freedom LLC acquired a new position in Cardinal Health during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,574,000. Belleair Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Cardinal Health during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,100,000. Finally, Axecap Investments LLC bought a new stake in Cardinal Health during the fourth quarter worth $2,371,000. 87.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cardinal Health Stock Down 2.5%

The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $229.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $216.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.39, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.49.

Cardinal Health Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Cardinal Health is a multinational healthcare services and products company headquartered in Dublin, Ohio. Tracing its roots to the early 1970s, the company has grown into a major provider of supply chain and distribution services for the healthcare sector. Cardinal Health operates across a range of service lines that support hospitals, health systems, pharmacies, physician offices and clinical laboratories.

The company’s core activities include the wholesale distribution of branded and generic pharmaceuticals, the supply and distribution of medical-surgical products, and the provision of logistics and inventory management solutions.