Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. Lowers Stock Holdings in Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH)

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. lessened its holdings in Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH - Free Report) by 80.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 23,654 shares of the company's stock after selling 98,596 shares during the period. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.'s holdings in Cardinal Health were worth $2,799,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Cardinal Health by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,859,132 shares of the company's stock valued at $691,145,000 after purchasing an additional 109,273 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Cardinal Health by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,182,514 shares of the company's stock valued at $376,396,000 after buying an additional 140,368 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP raised its position in shares of Cardinal Health by 154.6% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,151,736 shares of the company's stock valued at $372,756,000 after buying an additional 1,913,892 shares during the last quarter. Amundi lifted its holdings in shares of Cardinal Health by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 2,116,291 shares of the company's stock worth $259,309,000 after buying an additional 110,605 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Cardinal Health during the fourth quarter worth $246,748,000. 87.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Cardinal Health from $142.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, March 31st. TD Cowen raised Cardinal Health from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the company from $130.00 to $144.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Cardinal Health from $135.00 to $136.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Evercore ISI raised Cardinal Health from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $140.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Cardinal Health from $142.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $140.86.

Cardinal Health Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CAH opened at $137.64 on Friday. Cardinal Health, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $93.17 and a fifty-two week high of $139.50. The company has a market cap of $33.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.68, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.61. The business's 50 day moving average price is $130.82 and its 200-day moving average price is $124.02.

Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Sell-side analysts predict that Cardinal Health, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Cardinal Health Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st were paid a dividend of $0.5056 per share. This represents a $2.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 1st. Cardinal Health's dividend payout ratio is presently 37.69%.

About Cardinal Health

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.

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