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CAH vs. MCK: Cardinal Health vs. McKesson Stock Comparison

How do Cardinal Health (CAH) and McKesson (MCK) 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 McKesson (MCK) are both classified in the Health Care Distributors sub-industry within the broader Health Care Providers & Services industry, placing them in the closest GICS peer bucket.

Company profile comparison for Cardinal Health (CAH) and McKesson (MCK)
Profile ItemCAHMCK
NameCardinal Health, Inc.McKesson Corporation
Country/RegionUnited StatesUnited States
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 Distributors
Market Capitalization62.80 billion USD122.48 billion USD
CurrencyUSDUSD
ExchangeNYSENYSE
Listing DateAugust 4, 1983November 10, 1994
Security TypeCommon StockCommon Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

CAH
MCK
GSPC
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. McKesson (MCK), 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 McKesson (MCK). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Cardinal Health (CAH) and McKesson (MCK)
MetricCAHMCK
Total Return (1Y)35.44%25.40%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)40.52%32.67%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)43.73%37.84%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

CAH
MCK
GSPC
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. McKesson (MCK), 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 McKesson (MCK). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Cardinal Health (CAH) and McKesson (MCK)
MetricCAHMCK
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)25.91%31.71%
Beta (5Y)0.490.26
Max Drawdown (5Y)-20.95%-27.17%
Avg. Volume (3M)1.77M822.69K

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

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CAH and MCK 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 McKesson (MCK)
MetricCAHMCK
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)1.200.67
Sortino Ratio (1Y)1.901.15

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Neither Cardinal Health (CAH) nor McKesson (MCK) reports a ROE value for this period, so a direct comparison isn’t possible.

CAH

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

--

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

MCK

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

--

Max
47.61%
Q3
14.36%
Median
5.45%
Q1
-10.67%
Min
-47.01%
MCK
--
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. McKesson (MCK): Neither stock reports ROE, so the chart shows available benchmark boxes without value markers.

Net Margin (TTM)

Both Cardinal Health (CAH) at 0.71% and McKesson (MCK) at 1.12% 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%

MCK

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

1.12%

Max
29.35%
Q3
9.33%
Median
2.18%
MCK
1.12%
Q1
-6.29%
Min
-28.46%
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. McKesson (MCK): 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 McKesson (MCK) at 1.48% 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%

MCK

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

1.48%

Max
35.43%
Q3
14.14%
Median
6.81%
MCK
1.48%
Q1
-0.28%
Min
-16.29%
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. McKesson (MCK): A comparison of their operating margin against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Cardinal Health (CAH) and McKesson (MCK)
MetricCAHMCK
ROE (TTM)----
ROA (TTM)3.72%4.72%
Net Margin (TTM)0.71%1.12%
Operating Margin (TTM)1.34%1.48%
Gross Margin (TTM)3.90%3.65%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both Cardinal Health (CAH) at 14.23% and McKesson (MCK) at 12.36% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. McKesson (MCK): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

McKesson (MCK) at 49.22% 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 MCK.

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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. McKesson (MCK): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Cardinal Health (CAH) and McKesson (MCK)
MetricCAHMCK
Revenue Growth (YoY)14.23%12.36%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)7.44%13.39%
EPS Growth (YoY)12.09%49.22%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)93.37%15.31%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both Cardinal Health (CAH) at 0.89 and McKesson (MCK) at 0.90 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

MCK

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.90

Max
7.59
Q3
4.00
Median
1.98
Q1
1.37
MCK
0.90
Min
0.30
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. McKesson (MCK): A comparison of their current ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Neither Cardinal Health (CAH) nor McKesson (MCK) reports a debt-to-equity ratio value for this period, so a direct comparison isn’t possible.

CAH

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

--

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

MCK

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

--

Max
1.88
Q3
0.91
Median
0.58
Q1
0.16
Min
0.00
MCK
--
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. McKesson (MCK): Neither stock reports debt-to-equity ratio, so the chart shows available benchmark boxes without value markers.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Cardinal Health (CAH) and McKesson (MCK)
MetricCAHMCK
Current Ratio (MRQ)0.890.90
Debt / Equity (MRQ)----
Net Debt / EBITDA0.810.64

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both Cardinal Health (CAH) at 0.77% and McKesson (MCK) at 0.32% 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%

MCK

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.32%

MCK
0.32%
Max
0.00%
Q3
0.00%
Median
0.00%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. McKesson (MCK): 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 McKesson (MCK) at 8.77% 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%

MCK

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

8.77%

MCK
8.77%
Max
0.00%
Q3
0.00%
Median
0.00%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. McKesson (MCK): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Cardinal Health (CAH) and McKesson (MCK)
MetricCAHMCK
Dividend Yield (TTM)0.77%0.32%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)26.56%8.77%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both Cardinal Health (CAH) at 35.15 and McKesson (MCK) at 27.36 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

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

MCK

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

27.36

Max
80.41
Q3
47.62
Median
29.93
MCK
27.36
Q1
21.19
Min
4.21
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. McKesson (MCK): 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 McKesson (MCK) at 0.29 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

MCK

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.29

Max
8.80
Q3
4.32
Median
2.13
Q1
1.10
MCK
0.29
Min
0.03
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. McKesson (MCK): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Both Cardinal Health (CAH) at -20.84 and McKesson (MCK) at -30.85 report negative P/B ratio values, meaning both companies have negative book equity — neither multiple is meaningful for valuation.

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

MCK

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

-30.85

Max
11.68
Q3
6.12
Median
3.00
Q1
1.73
Min
-1.31
MCK
-30.85
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Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. McKesson (MCK): 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 McKesson (MCK)
MetricCAHMCK
P/E Ratio (TTM)35.1527.36
P/S Ratio (TTM)0.240.29
P/B Ratio (MRQ)-20.84-30.85
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)7.99%6.04%