Cencora (NYSE:COR) Hits New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Cencora, Inc. (NYSE:COR)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $280.70 and last traded at $278.17, with a volume of 1916693 shares. The stock had previously closed at $275.21.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COR has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Cencora from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Cencora from $289.00 to $301.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Mizuho started coverage on Cencora in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $280.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Cencora from $251.00 to $274.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Cencora from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cencora currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $280.20.

Cencora Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $54.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a 50-day moving average of $255.83 and a 200-day moving average of $242.06. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.40.

Cencora (NYSE:COR) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $3.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.50 by $0.23. Cencora had a net margin of 0.46% and a return on equity of 328.62%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Cencora, Inc. will post 15.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cencora Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.79%. Cencora’s payout ratio is currently 31.29%.

Insider Transactions at Cencora

In other news, EVP Elizabeth S. Campbell sold 4,127 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.28, for a total transaction of $1,107,191.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,665 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,934,326.20. The trade was a 21.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Steven H. Collis sold 14,578 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $269.51, for a total transaction of $3,928,916.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 317,913 shares in the company, valued at approximately $85,680,732.63. This trade represents a 4.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 30,675 shares of company stock worth $8,034,778. 10.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cencora

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Cencora by 63.0% during the 4th quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 119 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Banque Transatlantique SA bought a new stake in shares of Cencora during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Cencora in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC grew its position in Cencora by 85.2% in the 4th quarter. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC now owns 150 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kentucky Trust Co acquired a new position in Cencora during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. 97.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cencora Company Profile

Cencora, Inc sources and distributes pharmaceutical products. The company's U.S. Healthcare Solutions segment distributes pharmaceuticals, over-the-counter healthcare products, home healthcare supplies and equipment, and related services to acute care hospitals and health systems, independent and chain retail pharmacies, mail order pharmacies, medical clinics, long-term care and alternate site pharmacies, and other customers; provides pharmacy management, staffing, and other consulting services; supply management software to retail and institutional healthcare providers; packaging solutions to various institutional and retail healthcare providers; clinical trial support, product post-approval, and commercialization support services; data analytics, outcomes research, and additional services for biotechnology and pharmaceutical manufacturers; pharmaceuticals, vaccines, parasiticides, diagnostics, micro feed ingredients, and other products to the companion animal and production animal markets; and sales force services to manufacturers.