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Cardinal Health (CAH) Stock Declines While Market Improves: Some Information for Investors

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In the latest trading session, Cardinal Health (CAH - Free Report) closed at $221.77, marking a -1.99% move from the previous day. The stock trailed the S&P 500, which registered a daily gain of 1.09%. At the same time, the Dow added 0.14%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 1.91%.

Coming into today, shares of the prescription drug distributor had gained 13.58% in the past month. In that same time, the Medical sector gained 3.16%, while the S&P 500 gained 0.29%.

The investment community will be paying close attention to the earnings performance of Cardinal Health in its upcoming release. The company is expected to report EPS of $2.41, up 15.87% from the prior-year quarter. Alongside, our most recent consensus estimate is anticipating revenue of $65.61 billion, indicating a 9.06% upward movement from the same quarter last year.

For the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates project earnings of $10.76 per share and a revenue of $256.24 billion, demonstrating changes of +30.58% and +15.12%, respectively, from the preceding year.

It's also important for investors to be aware of any recent modifications to analyst estimates for Cardinal Health. These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the business outlook.

Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. To utilize this, we have created the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model that integrates these estimate changes and provides a functional rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate remained stagnant within the past month. Cardinal Health is holding a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now.

In terms of valuation, Cardinal Health is currently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 21.02. This represents a premium compared to its industry average Forward P/E of 15.32.

Investors should also note that CAH has a PEG ratio of 1.24 right now. The PEG ratio bears resemblance to the frequently used P/E ratio, but this parameter also includes the company's expected earnings growth trajectory. The Medical - Dental Supplies industry had an average PEG ratio of 1.58 as trading concluded yesterday.

The Medical - Dental Supplies industry is part of the Medical sector. With its current Zacks Industry Rank of 75, this industry ranks in the top 31% of all industries, numbering over 250.

The Zacks Industry Rank is ordered from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. 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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