Short Interest in Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH) Drops By 6.8%

Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest during the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 4,420,000 shares, a decline of 6.8% from the January 15th total of 4,740,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,300,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.9 days. Approximately 1.8% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Cardinal Health Price Performance

CAH stock opened at $126.35 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $30.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.63. Cardinal Health has a 12 month low of $93.17 and a 12 month high of $132.84. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $123.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $116.74.

Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Cardinal Health will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Cardinal Health Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $0.5056 per share. This represents a $2.02 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Cardinal Health’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.69%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on CAH. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Cardinal Health from $136.00 to $142.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Cardinal Health from $142.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Cardinal Health from $135.00 to $136.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays increased their price target on Cardinal Health from $117.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Mizuho began coverage on Cardinal Health in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $139.00 price target on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $136.87.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cardinal Health

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Cardinal Health in the 4th quarter valued at $246,748,000. Marshall Wace LLP raised its position in shares of Cardinal Health by 154.6% in the fourth 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 period. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cardinal Health during the 4th quarter worth about $141,963,000. Junto Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Cardinal Health during the 4th quarter valued at about $92,811,000. Finally, Woodline Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Cardinal Health in the 4th quarter valued at about $87,144,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.17% of the company’s stock.

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.