Virtu Financial LLC Acquires Shares of 20,572 Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH)

Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 20,572 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,023,000.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of CAH. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Cardinal Health during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $247,000. Brown Advisory Inc. bought a new position in Cardinal Health during the fourth quarter worth $207,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Cardinal Health in the fourth quarter worth $258,499,000. UBS Group AG increased its stake in Cardinal Health by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 435,687 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,917,000 after purchasing an additional 10,959 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cardinal Health during the fourth quarter worth $217,000. Institutional investors own 87.17% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Jessica L. Mayer sold 16,573 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.39, for a total value of $1,812,920.47. Following the sale, the insider now owns 75,971 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,310,467.69. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Jessica L. Mayer sold 16,573 shares of Cardinal Health stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.39, for a total transaction of $1,812,920.47. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 75,971 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,310,467.69. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jessica L. Mayer sold 17,896 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.48, for a total transaction of $1,905,566.08. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 94,529 shares in the company, valued at $10,065,447.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 113,963 shares of company stock worth $12,379,980 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on CAH shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Cardinal Health from $114.00 to $119.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. StockNews.com raised Cardinal Health from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Argus increased their price target on Cardinal Health from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Cardinal Health from $130.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on Cardinal Health from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Cardinal Health presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $119.36.

Cardinal Health Stock Performance

Shares of CAH stock opened at $111.39 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.13 billion, a PE ratio of 49.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.60. Cardinal Health, Inc. has a 1 year low of $85.82 and a 1 year high of $116.05. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $104.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $104.03.

Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 14th. The company reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by $0.10. Cardinal Health had a net margin of 0.37% and a negative return on equity of 54.85%. The firm had revenue of $59.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.74 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.55 EPS. Cardinal Health’s revenue was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Cardinal Health, Inc. will post 7.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cardinal Health Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.506 per share. This is a boost from Cardinal Health’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 1st. This represents a $2.02 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.82%. Cardinal Health’s payout ratio is presently 89.78%.

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.