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CAH vs. FMS: Cardinal Health vs. Fresenius Medical Care Stock Comparison

How do Cardinal Health (CAH) and Fresenius Medical Care (FMS) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Cardinal Health (CAH) and Fresenius Medical Care (FMS) both belong to the Health Care Providers & Services industry, though CAH is classified under Health Care Distributors while FMS falls under Health Care Services.

Cardinal Health (CAH) trades as ordinary local shares, while Fresenius Medical Care (FMS) trades as an ADR — compare with FX exposure, depositary-program fees, and dividend-withholding-tax differences in mind.

Company profile comparison for Cardinal Health (CAH) and Fresenius Medical Care (FMS)
Profile ItemCAHFMS
NameCardinal Health, Inc.Fresenius Medical Care AG - Depositary Receipt
Country/RegionUnited StatesGermany
GICS SectorHealth CareHealth Care
GICS Industry GroupHealth Care Equipment & ServicesHealth Care Equipment & Services
GICS IndustryHealth Care Providers & ServicesHealth Care Providers & Services
GICS Sub-IndustryHealth Care DistributorsHealth Care Services
Market Capitalization62.80 billion USD12.15 billion USD
CurrencyUSDUSD
ExchangeNYSENYSE
Listing DateAugust 4, 1983September 17, 1996
Security TypeCommon StockADR

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

CAH
FMS
GSPC
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. Fresenius Medical Care (FMS), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Cardinal Health (CAH) and Fresenius Medical Care (FMS). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Cardinal Health (CAH) and Fresenius Medical Care (FMS). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Cardinal Health (CAH) and Fresenius Medical Care (FMS)
MetricCAHFMS
Total Return (1Y)35.44%-0.71%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)40.52%13.88%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)43.73%-4.69%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

CAH
FMS
GSPC
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. Fresenius Medical Care (FMS), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Cardinal Health (CAH) and Fresenius Medical Care (FMS). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Cardinal Health (CAH) and Fresenius Medical Care (FMS)
MetricCAHFMS
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)25.91%30.61%
Beta (5Y)0.490.77
Max Drawdown (5Y)-20.95%-62.33%
Avg. Volume (3M)1.77M954.21K

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

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CAH and FMS are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Cardinal Health (CAH) and Fresenius Medical Care (FMS)
MetricCAHFMS
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)1.20-0.16
Sortino Ratio (1Y)1.90-0.21

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Capital efficiency shows on one side only: Fresenius Medical Care (FMS) earns 7.84% on shareholders’ equity, ranked against its industry; Cardinal Health (CAH) has no ROE this period.

CAH

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

--

Max
47.61%
Q3
14.36%
Median
5.45%
Q1
-10.67%
Min
-47.01%
CAH
--

FMS

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

7.84%

Max
47.61%
Q3
14.36%
FMS
7.84%
Median
5.45%
Q1
-10.67%
Min
-47.01%
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. Fresenius Medical Care (FMS): CAH does not report ROE, so it has no value marker; FMS is benchmarked against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group.

Net Margin (TTM)

Both Cardinal Health (CAH) at 0.71% and Fresenius Medical Care (FMS) at 4.22% keep about the typical share of revenue as profit for their industries — neither bottom line stands out from peers.

CAH

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.71%

Max
29.35%
Q3
9.33%
Median
2.18%
CAH
0.71%
Q1
-6.29%
Min
-28.46%

FMS

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

4.22%

Max
29.35%
Q3
9.33%
FMS
4.22%
Median
2.18%
Q1
-6.29%
Min
-28.46%
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. Fresenius Medical Care (FMS): A comparison of their net margin against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both Cardinal Health (CAH) at 1.34% and Fresenius Medical Care (FMS) at 9.63% run core operations about as efficiently as their industries’ norm — neither stands out on operating profitability.

CAH

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

1.34%

Max
35.43%
Q3
14.14%
Median
6.81%
CAH
1.34%
Q1
-0.28%
Min
-16.29%

FMS

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

9.63%

Max
35.43%
Q3
14.14%
FMS
9.63%
Median
6.81%
Q1
-0.28%
Min
-16.29%
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. Fresenius Medical Care (FMS): A comparison of their operating margin against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Cardinal Health (CAH) and Fresenius Medical Care (FMS)
MetricCAHFMS
ROE (TTM)--7.84%
ROA (TTM)3.72%3.94%
Net Margin (TTM)0.71%4.22%
Operating Margin (TTM)1.34%9.63%
Gross Margin (TTM)3.90%26.46%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Cardinal Health (CAH) at 14.23% is around its peer norm for revenue growth, while Fresenius Medical Care (FMS) at 1.51% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker demand or pricing momentum.

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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. Fresenius Medical Care (FMS): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Fresenius Medical Care (FMS) at 83.61% sits in the top EPS growth quartile, while Cardinal Health (CAH) at 12.09% is closer to the peer norm — faster per-share earnings growth for FMS.

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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. Fresenius Medical Care (FMS): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Cardinal Health (CAH) and Fresenius Medical Care (FMS)
MetricCAHFMS
Revenue Growth (YoY)14.23%1.51%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)7.44%0.39%
EPS Growth (YoY)12.09%83.61%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)93.37%13.47%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both Cardinal Health (CAH) at 0.89 and Fresenius Medical Care (FMS) at 0.99 run current ratio in the tighter-liquidity quartile of industry peers, leaving thinner cushions against current liabilities than typical competitors.

CAH

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.89

Max
7.59
Q3
4.00
Median
1.98
Q1
1.37
CAH
0.89
Min
0.30

FMS

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.99

Max
7.59
Q3
4.00
Median
1.98
Q1
1.37
FMS
0.99
Min
0.30
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. Fresenius Medical Care (FMS): A comparison of their current ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Only one side’s leverage can be read here: Fresenius Medical Care (FMS) carries debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79 against its industry range, while Cardinal Health (CAH) reports no figure this period.

CAH

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

--

Max
1.88
Q3
0.91
Median
0.58
Q1
0.16
Min
0.00
CAH
--

FMS

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.79

Max
1.88
Q3
0.91
FMS
0.79
Median
0.58
Q1
0.16
Min
0.00
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. Fresenius Medical Care (FMS): CAH does not report debt-to-equity ratio, so it has no value marker; FMS is benchmarked against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Cardinal Health (CAH) and Fresenius Medical Care (FMS)
MetricCAHFMS
Current Ratio (MRQ)0.890.99
Debt / Equity (MRQ)--0.79
Net Debt / EBITDA0.813.63

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both Cardinal Health (CAH) at 0.77% and Fresenius Medical Care (FMS) at 6.30% yield above their industries’ entire benchmark ranges — high enough that dividend safety, not income, becomes the first question.

CAH

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.77%

CAH
0.77%
Max
0.00%
Q3
0.00%
Median
0.00%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

FMS

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

6.30%

FMS
6.30%
Max
0.00%
Q3
0.00%
Median
0.00%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. Fresenius Medical Care (FMS): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both Cardinal Health (CAH) at 26.56% and Fresenius Medical Care (FMS) at 50.14% pay out more of their earnings than any of their industry peers — the thinnest cover in their groups, so dividend headroom deserves attention.

CAH

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

26.56%

CAH
26.56%
Max
0.00%
Q3
0.00%
Median
0.00%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

FMS

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

50.14%

FMS
50.14%
Max
0.00%
Q3
0.00%
Median
0.00%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. Fresenius Medical Care (FMS): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Cardinal Health (CAH) and Fresenius Medical Care (FMS)
MetricCAHFMS
Dividend Yield (TTM)0.77%6.30%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)26.56%50.14%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Fresenius Medical Care (FMS) at 13.53 sits in the cheaper P/E ratio quartile, while Cardinal Health (CAH) at 35.15 is closer to its industry’s usual earnings multiple — a discount for FMS, though growth and earnings durability still matter.

CAH

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

35.15

Max
80.41
Q3
47.62
CAH
35.15
Median
29.93
Q1
21.19
Min
4.21

FMS

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

13.53

Max
80.41
Q3
47.62
Median
29.93
Q1
21.19
FMS
13.53
Min
4.21
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. Fresenius Medical Care (FMS): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Both Cardinal Health (CAH) at 0.24 and Fresenius Medical Care (FMS) at 0.62 fetch a relatively low price per dollar of sales, landing in the cheaper P/S ratio quartile of their industries.

CAH

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.24

Max
8.80
Q3
4.32
Median
2.13
Q1
1.10
CAH
0.24
Min
0.03

FMS

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.62

Max
8.80
Q3
4.32
Median
2.13
Q1
1.10
FMS
0.62
Min
0.03
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. Fresenius Medical Care (FMS): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Cardinal Health (CAH) reports a negative P/B ratio of -20.84, meaning negative book equity — the multiple itself is not meaningful for valuation. Meanwhile Fresenius Medical Care (FMS) reports 0.85, ranking against industry peers normally.

CAH

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

-20.84

Max
11.68
Q3
6.12
Median
3.00
Q1
1.73
Min
-1.31
CAH
-20.84

FMS

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.85

Max
11.68
Q3
6.12
Median
3.00
Q1
1.73
FMS
0.85
Min
-1.31
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. Fresenius Medical Care (FMS): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Cardinal Health (CAH) and Fresenius Medical Care (FMS)
MetricCAHFMS
P/E Ratio (TTM)35.1513.53
P/S Ratio (TTM)0.240.62
P/B Ratio (MRQ)-20.840.85
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)7.99%12.29%