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Cencora, Inc. COR reported fourth-quarter fiscal 2025 adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $3.84, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.74 by 2.7%. The bottom line also improved 15% year over year.
GAAP loss per share was $1.75 against EPS of 2 cents in the year-ago period. The significant decline was primarily due to a rise in operating expenses.
For full-year fiscal 2025, the company reported adjusted EPS of $16.00, up 16.3% year over year. GAAP EPS for fiscal 2025 was $7.96 compared with $7.53 in the previous year.
Revenues totaled $83.73 billion, up 5.9% year over year. The top line beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 0.7%.
For full-year fiscal 2025, the company reported total revenues of $321.33 billion, up 9.3% year over year.
Cencora, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Cencora, Inc. Quote
U.S. Healthcare Solutions
Revenues in this segment totaled $75.8 billion, up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. This improvement was driven by overall market growth on increased unit volume, including improved sales of GLP-1 drugs and specialty products.
Segmental operating income totaled $872.4 million, up 25.1% year over year. Higher gross profit (as a result of increased product sales and the January 2025 acquisition of RCA) contributed to the upside, partly offset by increased operating expenses.
International Healthcare Solutions
This segment includes Alliance Healthcare, World Courier, Innomar and Profarma Specialty.
Revenues amounted to $7.9 billion, up 7.6% year over year. The top line increased 5.7% at constant currency (cc).
Operating income totaled $150.7 million, down 2% on a reported basis and 6% at cc. The reported decline was due to lower operating income at COR’s global specialty logistics and specialized consulting services businesses.
Cencora reported an adjusted gross profit of $2.9 billion, up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a percentage of revenues, the adjusted gross margin was 3.55%, up 36 basis points (bps) year over year.
The company recorded an adjusted operating income of $1.1 billion, up 20.6% year over year. As a percentage of revenues, the adjusted operating margin was 3.47%, which expanded 37 bps from the year-ago quarter’s level.
COR exited the fiscal fourth quarter with cash and cash equivalents worth $4.36 billion compared with $2.23 billion in the previous quarter.
Cumulative net cash used in operating activities totaled $4.98 billion compared with $618.1 million a year ago.
Cencora's board of directors declared a quarterly dividend of 60 cents per share. The new dividend is payable on Dec. 1, 2025, to shareholders of record at the close of business on Nov. 14, 2025.
The company issued its outlook for fiscal 2026 earnings and revenues.
Adjusted EPS is estimated to be in the $17.45-$17.75 range. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the same is pegged at $17.37.
Total revenues are projected to rise 5-7%. Sales at the U.S. Healthcare Solutions segment are anticipated to grow in the range of 5-7%. For the International Healthcare solutions business, revenues are projected to rise 6-8% reportedly as well as at cc.
Adjusted operating income is expected to improve 8-10% for fiscal 2026.
Operating income for the U.S. Healthcare Solutions segment is expected to improve 9-11%, while the same for the International Healthcare Solutions business is estimated to improve 5-8%, reportedly as well as at cc.
Cencora exited the fiscal fourth quarter on a strong note, with both its earnings and revenues beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate. The company’s EPS guidance for fiscal 2026 was also above estimates. However, shares were down 1.9% in pre-market trading. So far this year, COR’s shares have gained 53.3% compared with the industry’s growth of 2.8%. The S&P 500 Index was up 16.7% in the same time period.
The company continues to witness robust segmental performance due to growth in all markets and strong demand for specialty products and GLP-1 drugs. Per management, Cencora delivered a solid performance by playing a crucial role in the healthcare system while maintaining efficiency throughout its business. The company has been focused on its priorities. It has thoughtfully deployed capital to deliver long-term growth.
The acquisition of RCA appears promising, as it is likely to bring additional revenues in fiscal 2026.
Although COR’s margin has improved during the quarter, it continues to be negatively impacted by lower-margin GLP-1 drugs and the lack of exclusive COVID-19 therapy sales, which had higher margins. The company’s rising expenses to support business activities amid inflationary challenges put pressure on the operating margin. Cut-throat competition in the MedTech space is another headwind.
COR carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) at present.
Some better-ranked stocks in the broader medical space are Solventum Corporation SOLV, Boston Scientific Corporation BSX and Alcon ALC.
Solventum, carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present, has an estimated long-term growth rate of 4.1%. SOLV’s earnings surpassed estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, with the average surprise being 13.91%. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Solventum’s shares have gained 3.8% compared with the industry’s 2.6% growth so far this year.
Boston Scientific, carrying a Zacks Rank #2 at present, has an estimated long-term growth rate of 16.4%. BSX’s earnings surpassed estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, with the average surprise being 7.36%.
Boston Scientific’s shares have gained 10.9% compared with the industry’s 0.6% growth so far this year.
Alcon, carrying a Zacks Rank of 2 at present, has an estimated long-term growth rate of 10.3%. ALC’s earnings surpassed estimates in three of the trailing four quarters and missed once, with the average surprise being 4.61%.
Alcon’s shares have lost 12.6% compared to a flat industry so far this year.
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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