In the latest trading session, Cardinal Health (CAH) closed at $134.36, marking a +0.08% move from the previous day. The stock outpaced the S&P 500's daily loss of 2.24%. Elsewhere, the Dow saw a downswing of 1.73%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq depreciated by 3.07%.
Shares of the prescription drug distributor witnessed a gain of 2.12% over the previous month, beating the performance of the Medical sector with its loss of 7.47% and the S&P 500's loss of 4.17%.
The upcoming earnings release of Cardinal Health will be of great interest to investors. The company's earnings report is expected on May 1, 2025. The company is predicted to post an EPS of $2.15, indicating a 3.37% growth compared to the equivalent quarter last year. Meanwhile, our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of $55.03 billion, up 0.21% from the prior-year quarter.
For the entire fiscal year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $7.94 per share and a revenue of $222.62 billion, representing changes of +5.44% and -1.92%, respectively, from the prior year.
Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for Cardinal Health. These revisions help to show the ever-changing nature of near-term business trends. Hence, positive alterations in estimates signify analyst optimism regarding the company's business and profitability.
Our research demonstrates that these adjustments in estimates directly associate with imminent stock price performance. To exploit this, we've formed the Zacks Rank, a quantitative model that includes these estimate changes and presents a viable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, running from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), holds an admirable track record of superior performance, independently audited, with #1 stocks contributing an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has witnessed a 0.05% decrease. Cardinal Health presently features a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
Looking at valuation, Cardinal Health is presently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 16.91. This expresses a premium compared to the average Forward P/E of 16.74 of its industry.
Investors should also note that CAH has a PEG ratio of 1.77 right now. The PEG ratio is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but this metric also takes the company's expected earnings growth rate into account. As of the close of trade yesterday, the Medical - Dental Supplies industry held an average PEG ratio of 1.73.
The Medical - Dental Supplies industry is part of the Medical sector. At present, this industry carries a Zacks Industry Rank of 90, placing it within the top 37% of over 250 industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank assesses the strength of our separate industry groups by calculating the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks contained within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Make sure to utilize Zacks.com to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and more, in the coming trading sessions.
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Cardinal Health, Inc. (CAH): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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