Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.32 EPS

Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH) announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The company reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.32, FiscalAI reports. The business had revenue of $65.63 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $64.88 billion. Cardinal Health had a negative return on equity of 84.37% and a net margin of 0.68%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.93 earnings per share.

Here are the key takeaways from Cardinal Health’s conference call:

• Raised FY26 non-GAAP EPS guidance to $10.15–$10.35 (implying 23%–26% YoY) after a strong Q2 where consolidated revenue rose 19% to $66 billion and non‑GAAP EPS was $2.63 (+36%).
• The Pharmaceutical & Specialty Solutions segment led performance with revenue up 19% to $61 billion; management expects specialty revenues to exceed $50 billion in FY26 and closed the Solaris Health urology MSO acquisition in November to expand MSO scale.
• GMPD is showing a tangible turnaround—Q2 revenue +3% to $3.3 billion and segment profit improved to $37M—but part of the strength reflected distributor restocking timing and tariffs remain an adverse factor that may normalize in Q3.
• “Other” growth businesses delivered outsized results (revenue +34% to $1.7 billion, profit +52%), with Theranostics and OptiFreight each growing >30%, ADS integration proceeding well, and management reiterated strong cash generation with adjusted FCF guidance of $3.0–$3.5 billion while completing the $750M baseline buyback (Q2 repurchases of $375M) and returning leverage to ~3.2x.

Cardinal Health Stock Performance

NYSE CAH traded up $18.97 on Thursday, reaching $225.82. The stock had a trading volume of 1,539,900 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,760,018. The stock has a market cap of $53.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.64. Cardinal Health has a 12-month low of $120.72 and a 12-month high of $229.76. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $206.34 and its 200 day moving average price is $179.16.

Institutional Trading of Cardinal Health

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CAH. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership purchased a new stake in shares of Cardinal Health in the second quarter valued at about $1,935,000. Oxford Asset Management LLP purchased a new position in shares of Cardinal Health during the second quarter worth about $1,834,000. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Cardinal Health by 7.2% in the 3rd quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,241 shares of the company’s stock valued at $980,000 after acquiring an additional 418 shares during the period. Dark Forest Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Cardinal Health during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $695,000. Finally, Employees Retirement System of Texas purchased a new stake in Cardinal Health during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $608,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.17% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Cardinal Health

Here are the key news stories impacting Cardinal Health this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 results beat consensus — GAAP revenue of ~$65.6B (+19% y/y) and non‑GAAP EPS of $2.63 topped estimates, driven by strong segment margins. Management raised fiscal‑year non‑GAAP EPS guidance again to $10.15–$10.35. CAH Q2 Earnings Beat
• Positive Sentiment: Company raised guidance for a second time — analysts and journalists flagged the guidance lift as a key catalyst for the rally. The guidance boost signals confidence in specialty drug demand and margin leverage. Cardinal Health Stock Roars Higher
• Positive Sentiment: Specialty/pharma distribution strength — management cited surging demand for specialty medicines (including GLP‑1s) as a major growth driver, helping operating earnings and revenue growth. Reuters: Boosts Forecast
• Positive Sentiment: Capital return & balance‑sheet progress — Cardinal completed its $750M baseline share repurchase and said it has reached its targeted leverage range, which supports buyback capacity and investor confidence. PR Newswire: Q2 Results & Buyback
• Positive Sentiment: Market reaction — coverage notes the stock pushed to a 52‑week high after the results, reflecting strong investor demand on the news. Benzinga: 52‑Week High
• Neutral Sentiment: Details & context available — the full earnings release, slide deck and call transcript are posted for investors wanting line‑by‑line metrics and management commentary. Press Release / Slides Earnings Call Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Key drivers vs. estimates — analysts point to Pharma and Specialty Solutions as the primary beat contributors; follow‑through will depend on sustainability of GLP‑1 demand and pricing dynamics. Zacks: Driver Analysis
• Negative Sentiment: Margin/return metrics and valuation caveats — despite strong top‑line growth, trailing net margin remains thin (~0.7%) and reported return on equity was negative last period; valuation (PE ~34) is elevated, so the stock may be sensitive to execution or guidance misses. MarketBeat: Metrics & Valuation

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CAH has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Cardinal Health in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Cardinal Health from $221.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 15th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Cardinal Health from $185.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on Cardinal Health from $195.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on Cardinal Health from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Cardinal Health presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $230.43.

Cardinal Health Company Profile

Cardinal Health is a multinational healthcare services and products company headquartered in Dublin, Ohio. Tracing its roots to the early 1970s, the company has grown into a major provider of supply chain and distribution services for the healthcare sector. Cardinal Health operates across a range of service lines that support hospitals, health systems, pharmacies, physician offices and clinical laboratories.

The company’s core activities include the wholesale distribution of branded and generic pharmaceuticals, the supply and distribution of medical-surgical products, and the provision of logistics and inventory management solutions.