CAH
Cardinal Health, Inc.
CAH has the edge over NVO overall, supported by lower modeled downside and stronger fundamentals.
NVO
Novo Nordisk A/S
NVO offers stronger valuation, but that advantage does not outweigh its weaker overall profile.
CAH Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Healthy | |
| Stable | |
| Healthy |
CAH's profitability and balance sheet are currently healthy, and its revenue and cash flow are stable.
NVO Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Stable | |
| Healthy |
NVO's revenue, profitability and balance sheet are currently healthy, and its cash flow is stable.
CAH PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 17x | $130 | -53% |
| Forward | 21x | $278 | — |
| Fair | 30x | $231 | -17% |
| Current | 36x | $278 | — |
| Expensive | 44x | $341 | +23% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
CAH's PE is in its expensive range at 36x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 21x next year's earnings, in its cheap range.
NVO PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current | 10x | $40.65 | — |
| Cheap | 14x | $53.56 | +32% |
| Fair | 27x | $103 | +154% |
| Expensive | 39x | $152 | +273% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
NVO has the edge over CAH in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
CAH Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Stable | |
| Stable | |
| Limited | |
| Moderate |
Analysts expect CAH's earnings to grow, with its revenue and profitability holding steady.
NVO Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| -- | |
| Stable | |
| Growth | |
| Weakening | |
| Limited | |
| Low |
Analysts expect NVO's revenue to grow, but its profitability to weaken. However, they disagree widely on these estimates.
CAH Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $13.12 | +70% |
| Q3 2026 | $7.73 | +17% |
| Q2 2026 | $7.23 | +12% |
| Q1 2026 | $6.54 | +2.5% |
| Q4 2025 | $6.95 | +30% |
| Q3 2025 | $6.63 | +30% |
| Q2 2025 | $6.45 | +88% |
| Q1 2025 | $6.38 | +182% |
| Q4 2024 | $5.33 | +109% |
CAH has the edge over NVO on earnings, with stronger typical year-over-year growth.
NVO Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $3.89 | +4.9% |
| Q1 2026 | $4.07 | +17% |
| Q4 2025 | $3.42 | +1.8% |
| Q3 2025 | $3.47 | +10% |
| Q2 2025 | $3.71 | +24% |
| Q1 2025 | $3.49 | +18% |
| Q4 2024 | $3.36 | +21% |
| Q3 2024 | $3.15 | +27% |
NVO's earnings per share have climbed steadily: $3.89 over the past year, up 4.9% from the year before, and higher year over year every quarter since late 2020.
CAH Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $67.5B | +5.5% |
| Q2 2026 | $63.7B | +5.8% |
| Q1 2026 | $60.9B | +11% |
| Q4 2025 | $65.6B | +19% |
| Q3 2025 | $64B | +22% |
| Q2 2025 | $60.2B | +0.8% |
| Q1 2025 | $54.9B | -0.1% |
| Q4 2024 | $55.3B | -3.8% |
CAH's revenue has grown year over year for six quarters in a row: $67.5B last quarter, up 5.5% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 1.1% | +0.1 points |
| Q2 2026 | 1.1% | +0.4 points |
| Q1 2026 | 0.8% | -0.5 points |
| Q4 2025 | 1.1% | +0.1 points |
| Q3 2025 | 1% | -0.1 points |
| Q2 2025 | 0.7% | 0 points |
| Q1 2025 | 1.3% | +0.7 points |
| Q4 2024 | 1% | +0.2 points |
CAH's operating margin was 1.1% last quarter, about level with the same quarter a year ago.
NVO Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $11.7B | +2.1% |
| Q1 2026 | $14.4B | +24% |
| Q4 2025 | $11.8B | -7.6% |
| Q3 2025 | $11.1B | +5.1% |
| Q2 2025 | $11.4B | +13% |
| Q1 2025 | $11.6B | +19% |
| Q4 2024 | $12.7B | +30% |
| Q3 2024 | $10.6B | +21% |
NVO has the edge over CAH on sales, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | 34% | -9 points |
| Q1 2026 | 62% | +12 points |
| Q4 2025 | 40% | -2.8 points |
| Q3 2025 | 32% | -16 points |
| Q2 2025 | 44% | +5.4 points |
| Q1 2025 | 50% | +1 points |
| Q4 2024 | 43% | +2.2 points |
| Q3 2024 | 47% | +1.6 points |
NVO has the edge over CAH on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
CAH Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $1.2B | +43% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.4B | +10% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.7B | -40% |
| Q4 2025 | $555M | +$1.1B |
| Q3 2025 | $865M | +$2.6B |
| Q2 2025 | $1.3B | -31% |
| Q1 2025 | $2.8B | +$3B |
| Q4 2024 | -$499M | -146% |
CAH generated $4.9B in free cash flow over the past year, up 10% from the year before.
NVO Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $6.3B | +73% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.8B | +20% |
| Q4 2025 | -$5.4B | -$4.7B |
| Q3 2025 | $4.6B | -2.1% |
| Q2 2025 | $3.6B | -34% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.5B | +89% |
| Q4 2024 | -$632.6M | +$390.5M |
| Q3 2024 | $4.7B | +3.3% |
NVO still generates free cash flow, though less than at its 2026 peak: $7.3B over the past year.
CAH Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -1.7% | -4M shares |
| 1 year | -2.5% | -6M shares |
| 3 years | -6.8% | -17M shares |
| 5 years | -19% | -56M shares |
| Available history | -21% | -61M shares |
CAH has the edge over NVO on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $500M |
| Q2 2026 | $350M |
| Q1 2026 | $250M |
| Q4 2025 | $383M |
| Q3 2025 | $375M |
| Q2 2025 | — |
| Q1 2025 | $375M |
| Q4 2024 | $15M |
CAH spent $1.5B buying back its own shares over the past year, up 94% from the year before.
NVO Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.3% | -12.9M shares |
| 1 year | -0.2% | -11M shares |
| 3 years | -1.5% | -66.8M shares |
| 5 years | -3.8% | -177M shares |
| Available history | -6.5% | -311M shares |
NVO has 4.4B diluted shares, about the same as a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $520M |
| Q1 2026 | $356.7M |
| Q4 2025 | — |
| Q3 2025 | — |
| Q2 2025 | — |
| Q1 2025 | $206.3M |
| Q4 2024 | $1.1B |
| Q3 2024 | $357.4M |
NVO spent $877M buying back its own shares over the past year, down 48% from the year before.
CAH Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 1.0x | Very low |
| Q2 2026 | 1.1x | Healthy |
| Q1 2026 | 1.5x | Healthy |
| Q4 2025 | 1.8x | Healthy |
| Q3 2025 | 1.4x | Healthy |
| Q2 2025 | 1.5x | Healthy |
| Q1 2025 | 1.4x | Healthy |
| Q4 2024 | 1.4x | Healthy |
CAH's net debt is about a year of its operating earnings (EBITDA), down from 1.4 years a year ago.
NVO Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | 0.5x | Very low |
| Q1 2026 | 0.7x | Very low |
| Q4 2025 | 0.6x | Very low |
| Q3 2025 | 0.4x | Very low |
| Q2 2025 | 0.5x | Very low |
| Q1 2025 | 0.5x | Very low |
| Q4 2024 | 0.6x | Very low |
| Q3 2024 | -0.0x | Very low |
NVO has the edge over CAH on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
CAH Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 70.8 | Overbought |
| Stochastic | 81.9 | Overbought |
CAH's weekly RSI is 71 (overbought) and its Stochastic is 82 (overbought).
NVO Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 43.0 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 27.0 | Neutral |
NVO's weekly RSI is 43 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 27 (neutral).
CAH PE vs Healthcare Sector
| Metric | CAH | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 36x | 26x | 39% above |
| PE % | 73 | 29 | 44 pts above |
CAH is trading at 36x earnings, a 39% premium to the Healthcare sector's median of 26x.
NVO PE vs Healthcare Sector
| Metric | NVO | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 10x | 26x | 60% below |
| PE % | 6 | 29 | 23 pts below |
NVO has the edge over CAH on valuation relative to its sector.
CAH Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $248.8 | 12% above |
| 20 week MA | $239.7 | 16% above |
| 50 week MA | $222.0 | 25% above |
| 100 week MA | $185.9 | 50% above |
| 200 week MA | $141.9 | 96% above |
CAH has the edge over NVO on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
NVO Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $39.2 | 3.7% above |
| 20 week MA | $43.9 | 7.4% below |
| 50 week MA | $45.3 | 10% below |
| 100 week MA | $56.3 | 28% below |
| 200 week MA | $80.7 | 50% below |
NVO has bounced recently, but its long-term trend is still down: it's above its 8-week average, but 50% below its 200-week average.
CAH Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $51.5 | $53.8 | +4.5% |
| 2021 | $53.8 | $50.8 | -5.7% |
| 2022 | $50.8 | $80.1 | +58% |
| 2023 | $80.1 | $100.8 | +26% |
| 2024 | $100.8 | $119.1 | +18% |
| 2025 | $119.1 | $208.3 | +75% |
| 2026 YTD | $208.3 | $278.1 | +34% |
CAH has the edge over NVO on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.
NVO Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $29.1 | $34.7 | +19% |
| 2021 | $34.7 | $54.2 | +56% |
| 2022 | $54.2 | $67.0 | +24% |
| 2023 | $67.0 | $103.5 | +54% |
| 2024 | $103.5 | $87.4 | -16% |
| 2025 | $87.4 | $52.4 | -40% |
| 2026 YTD | $52.4 | $40.7 | -22% |
NVO has finished higher in four of the last six years, two of them by more than 50%. It's down 22% so far in 2026.