Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH) Short Interest Down 20.1% in November

Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH) was the target of a large decline in short interest in the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 4,780,000 shares, a decline of 20.1% from the November 15th total of 5,980,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 2,040,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.3 days. Currently, 2.0% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Cardinal Health Stock Performance

NYSE CAH traded up $0.64 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $118.10. 1,413,636 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,100,808. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.58 billion, a PE ratio of 22.98, a PEG ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.61. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $117.12 and its 200 day simple moving average is $108.35. Cardinal Health has a 1-year low of $93.17 and a 1-year high of $126.23.

Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH) last released its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $52.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $50.90 billion. Cardinal Health had a net margin of 0.56% and a negative return on equity of 56.56%. Cardinal Health’s revenue was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.73 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Cardinal Health will post 7.82 EPS for the current year.

Cardinal Health Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.5056 per share. This represents a $2.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 2nd. Cardinal Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.30%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cardinal Health

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CAH. Copley Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Cardinal Health during the third quarter worth about $507,000. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas purchased a new stake in Cardinal Health during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $497,000. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of Cardinal Health by 6.6% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 151,185 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,918,000 after purchasing an additional 9,385 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of Cardinal Health during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $846,000. Finally, TD Private Client Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Cardinal Health by 27.6% during the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 15,950 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,763,000 after buying an additional 3,449 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.17% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on CAH shares. StockNews.com downgraded Cardinal Health from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, November 3rd. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Cardinal Health from $134.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Argus upped their price objective on shares of Cardinal Health from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of Cardinal Health from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Cardinal Health from $111.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $126.75.

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.