Howe & Rusling Inc. Buys New Stake in Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH)

Howe & Rusling Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 1,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $211,000.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its stake in Cardinal Health by 23.9% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 12,727 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,406,000 after buying an additional 2,451 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Cardinal Health by 35.9% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 32,964 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,643,000 after acquiring an additional 8,707 shares during the period. Algert Global LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cardinal Health in the third quarter valued at $1,008,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P boosted its holdings in Cardinal Health by 650.4% in the third quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 6,836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $756,000 after purchasing an additional 5,925 shares during the period. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in Cardinal Health during the 3rd quarter worth $70,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.17% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on CAH. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Cardinal Health from $142.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. TD Cowen raised shares of Cardinal Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $130.00 to $144.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Cardinal Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $140.00 to $150.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Argus set a $148.00 price objective on shares of Cardinal Health in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Cardinal Health from $135.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Cardinal Health currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $139.36.

Cardinal Health Stock Up 2.2 %

Shares of CAH stock opened at $136.90 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $128.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $120.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.07 billion, a PE ratio of 25.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.66. Cardinal Health, Inc. has a 52-week low of $93.17 and a 52-week high of $139.81.

Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH) last released its 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%. Analysts expect that Cardinal Health, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cardinal Health Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $0.5056 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $2.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.48%. Cardinal Health’s payout ratio is currently 37.69%.

Cardinal Health Profile

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.