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Cardinal Health First Quarter Earnings Preview
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CAH
On Tuesday, October 30, 2012, Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH) will report its first quarter earnings.
Earnings are perhaps the single most studied number in a company's financial statements because they show a company's profitability. SEE: Everything Investors Need To Know About Earnings
What to Expect: Cardinal Health is expected to report 79 cents per share, up 8.2% from a year ago when the company reported earnings of 73 cents per share.
While down from 85 cents three months ago, the consensus estimate has remained unchanged over the past 30 days. For the fiscal year, analysts are projecting earnings of $3.44 per share.
Cardinal Health is expected to report revenue of $26.35 billion for the quarter, down by 1.6% from last year's figure of $26.79 billion. For the fiscal year, expected revenue is $100.21 billion.
Company Performance: Revenue has risen for four consecutive quarters now. It increased 0% to $26.76 billion in the fourth quarter of the last fiscal year. Prior to that, the figure rose 3.2% in the third quarter of the last fiscal year, 6.7% in the second quarter of the last fiscal year and 9.6% in the first quarter of the last fiscal year.
The P/E ratio for CAH is 13.3, above the industry average of 1.94. Usually, if a stock has a high P/E ratio, it indicates that the market expects the company to grow earnings quickly in the future. The P/E ratio has been used for ages by analysts and still remains one of the most relevant pieces of stock valuation. High P/E stocks could be "growth" stocks, while low PE stocks may be "value" stocks. SEE: Understanding The P/E Ratio
The stock price has fallen 3.9% to $40.68 from $42.34 since July 27, 2012. Cardinal Health's best recent streak was when its price gained $3.14 per share between September 12, 2012 and October 12, 2012.
The Competition: Cardinal Health offers products and services that improve the safety and productivity of healthcare providers. Analysts are optimistic about Cardinal Health, with 10 of 12 assigning it a buy rating. Buy ratings have increased slightly over the last three months.
The company's closest competitor in the biotechnology and drugs industry is McKesson (MCK). Analysts are more optimistic about Cardinal Health than about McKesson. Only eight out of 13 analysts rate the latter a buy.
Earnings are perhaps the single most studied number in a company's financial statements because they show a company's profitability. SEE: Everything Investors Need To Know About Earnings
What to Expect: Cardinal Health is expected to report 79 cents per share, up 8.2% from a year ago when the company reported earnings of 73 cents per share.
While down from 85 cents three months ago, the consensus estimate has remained unchanged over the past 30 days. For the fiscal year, analysts are projecting earnings of $3.44 per share.
Cardinal Health is expected to report revenue of $26.35 billion for the quarter, down by 1.6% from last year's figure of $26.79 billion. For the fiscal year, expected revenue is $100.21 billion.
Company Performance: Revenue has risen for four consecutive quarters now. It increased 0% to $26.76 billion in the fourth quarter of the last fiscal year. Prior to that, the figure rose 3.2% in the third quarter of the last fiscal year, 6.7% in the second quarter of the last fiscal year and 9.6% in the first quarter of the last fiscal year.
The stock price has fallen 3.9% to $40.68 from $42.34 since July 27, 2012. Cardinal Health's best recent streak was when its price gained $3.14 per share between September 12, 2012 and October 12, 2012.
The Competition: Cardinal Health offers products and services that improve the safety and productivity of healthcare providers. Analysts are optimistic about Cardinal Health, with 10 of 12 assigning it a buy rating. Buy ratings have increased slightly over the last three months.
The company's closest competitor in the biotechnology and drugs industry is McKesson (MCK). Analysts are more optimistic about Cardinal Health than about McKesson. Only eight out of 13 analysts rate the latter a buy.
by
Investopedia Staff
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