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CAH or COR or MCK
Which Stock Would AI Choose? Cardinal Health (CAH) vs. Cencora (COR) vs. McKesson (MCK) Stock Comparison
Key Takeaways
- The trio of CAH, COR, and MCK dominates U.S. pharmaceutical distribution with over 90% market share.
- COR leads year-to-date (YTD) gains at 10.3%, followed by CAH at 3.6% and MCK at 1.8%.
- CAH posted a Q3 earnings per share (EPS) beat with raised fiscal 2026 guidance, despite revenue miss, driving mixed sentiment.
- COR eyes Q2 earnings growth amid recent mergers and acquisitions (M&A), including a $1.1 billion retina services deal.
- MCK anticipates robust Q4 EPS expansion, bolstered by fresh analyst Outperform ratings.
- All three exhibit recent monthly declines around 5-7%, reflecting sector pressures, with MCK offering the lowest price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio at 23.2.
Introduction
Cardinal Health (CAH), Cencora (COR), and McKesson (MCK) form the core of the U.S. pharmaceutical wholesale sector, handling distribution for drugs, medical supplies, and related services. This stock comparison aids investors and traders assessing relative performance amid evolving dynamics like specialty drug demand, biosimilars adoption, and regulatory oversight. Those seeking defensive healthcare exposure with growth potential or evaluating momentum in a consolidating market will find value in analyzing their business models, recent trajectories, and valuation contrasts for informed positioning.
CAH Overview and Recent Performance
Cardinal Health (CAH) specializes in pharmaceutical distribution, medical and surgical products, and third-party logistics for manufacturers. With a market cap of approximately $46 billion and beta of 0.54 (indicating lower volatility), shares trade around $197-$211 in recent market activity. In recent weeks, CAH reported Q3 fiscal 2026 results featuring an EPS beat of $3.17 versus estimates of $2.79, though revenue fell short at $60.94 billion. The company raised its full-year EPS outlook, citing specialty segment momentum, but margin pressures from tariffs tempered enthusiasm, contributing to a post-earnings dip and heightened short-term caution.
COR Overview and Recent Performance
Cencora (COR), previously AmerisourceBergen, delivers pharmaceutical distribution, animal health solutions, and specialty services, with a $59 billion market cap and beta of 0.64. Shares hover near $302 amid recent softening. Over recent weeks, COR pursued strategic M&A, including a $1.1 billion expansion into retina services and divestiture of patient services operations to CareMetx. Approaching Q2 earnings with expected EPS of $4.81, sentiment reflects anticipation of growth but weighs a 5.2% monthly decline tied to broader sector rotation.
MCK Overview and Recent Performance
McKesson (MCK), the sector leader, provides drug distribution, health information technology, and medical supplies, boasting a $99 billion market cap and the lowest beta at 0.35 for stability. Trading around $805, shares have navigated recent dips. In recent market activity, MCK garnered William Blair's Outperform initiation, highlighting its competitive moat. Ahead of Q4 earnings projecting $11.56 EPS and $102 billion revenue—signaling 14% growth—positioning remains resilient despite monthly softness, supported by biosimilars tailwinds.
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Head-to-Head Comparison
All three operate akin business models centered on high-volume pharmaceutical distribution, with exposure to specialty drugs and manufacturer services differentiating growth drivers. CAH emphasizes medical products alongside pharma, while COR and MCK lean into animal health and IT/services, respectively. Recent momentum shows uniform 5-7% monthly pullbacks amid sector rotation, contrasting COR’s YTD lead with CAH’s longer-term outperformance (47% past year vs. 8%). Risk factors include regulatory pricing scrutiny, though resolved opioid issues stabilize outlooks. Valuation sensitivity favors MCK’s P/E of 23 versus 30 for CAH and 36 for COR; market sentiment tilts positive across the board with Buy-leaning analyst targets implying 20-30% upside.
Tickeron AI Verdict
Tickeron’s AI analysis leans toward MCK in the current environment, citing its dominant scale, attractive valuation, low beta for stability, and anticipated earnings catalysts amid oversold indicators signaling potential rebound. While CAH shows uptrend consistency post-earnings and COR YTD strength, MCK’s relative positioning offers probabilistic edge for trend resumption.
Disclaimer
The information on this webpage is provided for general informational and educational purposes only and is not intended as investment advice, a recommendation to purchase or sell any security, or an offer or solicitation related to investments. It does not consider your personal financial situation, goals, or risk profile, and all investing carries inherent risks, including the possibility of losing your entire investment. For more details, please review our full disclaimer.
Long-Term Analysis
It is best to consider a long-term outlook for a ticker by using Fundamental Analysis (FA) ratings. The rating of 1 to 100, where 1 is best and 100 is worst, is divided into thirds. The first third (a green rating of 1-33) indicates that the ticker is undervalued; the second third (a grey number between 34 and 66) means that the ticker is valued fairly; and the last third (red number of 67 to 100) reflects that the ticker is undervalued. We use an FA Score to show how many ratings show the ticker to be undervalued (green) or overvalued (red).
CAH’s FA Score shows that 2 FA rating(s) are green whileCOR’s FA Score has 1 green FA rating(s), and MCK’s FA Score reflects 2 green FA rating(s).
- CAH’s FA Score: 2 green, 3 red.
- COR’s FA Score: 1 green, 4 red.
- MCK’s FA Score: 2 green, 3 red.
Short-Term Analysis
It is best to consider a short-term outlook for a ticker by using Technical Analysis (TA) indicators. We use Odds of Success as the percentage of outcomes which confirm successful trade signals in the past.
If the Odds of Success (the likelihood of the continuation of a trend) for each indicator are greater than 50%, then the generated signal is confirmed. A green percentage from 90% to 51% indicates that the ticker is in a bullish trend. A red percentage from 90% - 51% indicates that the ticker is in a bearish trend. All grey percentages are below 50% and are considered not to confirm the trend signal.
CAH’s TA Score shows that 5 TA indicator(s) are bullish while COR’s TA Score has 4 bullish TA indicator(s), and MCK’s TA Score reflects 4 bullish TA indicator(s).
- CAH’s TA Score: 5 bullish, 3 bearish.
- COR’s TA Score: 4 bullish, 5 bearish.
- MCK’s TA Score: 4 bullish, 4 bearish.
Price Growth
CAH (@Medical Distributors) experienced а +6.29% price change this week, while COR (@Medical Distributors) price change was -1.06% , and MCK (@Medical Distributors) price fluctuated +3.33% for the same time period.
The average weekly price growth across all stocks in the @Medical Distributors industry was -2.69%. For the same industry, the average monthly price growth was -6.72%, and the average quarterly price growth was -2.81%.
Reported Earning Dates
CAH is expected to report earnings on Aug 18, 2026.
COR is expected to report earnings on Aug 05, 2026.
MCK is expected to report earnings on Aug 05, 2026.
Industries' Descriptions
@Medical Distributors (-2.69% weekly)Healthcare distribution market can be segmented into pharmaceutical product distribution services, medical device distribution services, and biopharmaceutical product distribution services. In addition to serving as intermediaries, many medical distributors also purchase and take legal ownership of pharmaceuticals and manage inventory and credit risk. According to a Deloitte report, pharmaceutical distributors’ core services of efficient product distribution, inventory management, financial risk management, and information-sharing generate $33 billion-$53 billion in value annually to the U.S. health care ecosystem. Some prominent players in the overall medical distribution industry include McKesson Corporation, AmerisourceBergen Corporation, Cardinal Health, Inc. and Patterson Companies, Inc.
| CAH | COR | MCK | |
| Capitalization | 45.7B | 50.1B | 91.4B |
| EBITDA | 3.27B | 5.03B | 7.18B |
| Gain YTD | -4.545 | -23.391 | -7.203 |
| P/E Ratio | 29.80 | 19.75 | 19.82 |
| Revenue | 251B | 329B | 403B |
| Total Cash | 3.94B | N/A | 3.98B |
| Total Debt | 8.92B | 7.92B | 8.61B |
CAH | COR | MCK | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
OUTLOOK RATING 1..100 | 71 | 5 | 69 | |
VALUATION overvalued / fair valued / undervalued 1..100 | 83 Overvalued | 73 Overvalued | 11 Undervalued | |
PROFIT vs RISK RATING 1..100 | 12 | 42 | 22 | |
SMR RATING 1..100 | 99 | 12 | 100 | |
PRICE GROWTH RATING 1..100 | 60 | 65 | 63 | |
P/E GROWTH RATING 1..100 | 25 | 87 | 79 | |
SEASONALITY SCORE 1..100 | n/a | 50 | 50 |
Tickeron ratings are formulated such that a rating of 1 designates the most successful stocks in a given industry, while a rating of 100 points to the least successful stocks for that industry.
MCK's Valuation (11) in the Medical Distributors industry is somewhat better than the same rating for COR (73) in the Real Estate Investment Trusts industry, and is significantly better than the same rating for CAH (83) in the Medical Distributors industry. This means that MCK's stock grew somewhat faster than COR’s and significantly faster than CAH’s over the last 12 months.
CAH's Profit vs Risk Rating (12) in the Medical Distributors industry is in the same range as MCK (22) in the Medical Distributors industry, and is in the same range as COR (42) in the Real Estate Investment Trusts industry. This means that CAH's stock grew similarly to MCK’s and similarly to COR’s over the last 12 months.
COR's SMR Rating (12) in the Real Estate Investment Trusts industry is significantly better than the same rating for CAH (99) in the Medical Distributors industry, and is significantly better than the same rating for MCK (100) in the Medical Distributors industry. This means that COR's stock grew significantly faster than CAH’s and significantly faster than MCK’s over the last 12 months.
CAH's Price Growth Rating (60) in the Medical Distributors industry is in the same range as MCK (63) in the Medical Distributors industry, and is in the same range as COR (65) in the Real Estate Investment Trusts industry. This means that CAH's stock grew similarly to MCK’s and similarly to COR’s over the last 12 months.
CAH's P/E Growth Rating (25) in the Medical Distributors industry is somewhat better than the same rating for MCK (79) in the Medical Distributors industry, and is somewhat better than the same rating for COR (87) in the Real Estate Investment Trusts industry. This means that CAH's stock grew somewhat faster than MCK’s and somewhat faster than COR’s over the last 12 months.
| CAH | COR | MCK | |
|---|---|---|---|
| RSI ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 65% | 2 days ago 67% | 2 days ago 63% |
| Stochastic ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 67% | 2 days ago 61% | 2 days ago 65% |
| Momentum ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 41% | 2 days ago 51% | 2 days ago 45% |
| MACD ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 79% | 2 days ago 50% | 2 days ago 41% |
| TrendWeek ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 64% | 2 days ago 42% | 2 days ago 63% |
| TrendMonth ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 41% | 2 days ago 42% | 2 days ago 40% |
| Advances ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 65% | 9 days ago 60% | 2 days ago 65% |
| Declines ODDS (%) | 6 days ago 43% | 13 days ago 41% | 6 days ago 40% |
| BollingerBands ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 59% | 2 days ago 63% | 2 days ago 73% |
| Aroon ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 53% | 2 days ago 45% | 2 days ago 36% |
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CAH and
Correlation & Price change
A.I.dvisor indicates that over the last year, CAH has been closely correlated with MCK. These tickers have moved in lockstep 69% of the time. This A.I.-generated data suggests there is a high statistical probability that if CAH jumps, then MCK could also see price increases.
| Ticker / NAME | Correlation To CAH | 1D Price Change % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAH | 100% | +0.42% | ||
| MCK - CAH | 69% Closely correlated | +1.79% | ||
| COR - CAH | 58% Loosely correlated | -1.07% | ||
| HSIC - CAH | 19% Poorly correlated | +0.15% | ||
| SHTDF - CAH | 12% Poorly correlated | N/A | ||
| EDAP - CAH | 9% Poorly correlated | +1.57% | ||
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COR and
Correlation & Price change
A.I.dvisor indicates that over the last year, COR has been closely correlated with MCK. These tickers have moved in lockstep 76% of the time. This A.I.-generated data suggests there is a high statistical probability that if COR jumps, then MCK could also see price increases.
| Ticker / NAME | Correlation To COR | 1D Price Change % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| COR | 100% | -1.07% | ||
| MCK - COR | 76% Closely correlated | +1.79% | ||
| CAH - COR | 68% Closely correlated | +0.42% | ||
| HSIC - COR | 19% Poorly correlated | +0.15% | ||
| SHTDF - COR | 17% Poorly correlated | N/A | ||
| EDAP - COR | 4% Poorly correlated | +1.57% | ||
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MCK and
Correlation & Price change
A.I.dvisor indicates that over the last year, MCK has been closely correlated with COR. These tickers have moved in lockstep 72% of the time. This A.I.-generated data suggests there is a high statistical probability that if MCK jumps, then COR could also see price increases.
| Ticker / NAME | Correlation To MCK | 1D Price Change % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MCK | 100% | +1.79% | ||
| COR - MCK | 72% Closely correlated | -1.07% | ||
| CAH - MCK | 68% Closely correlated | +0.42% | ||
| HSIC - MCK | 22% Poorly correlated | +0.15% | ||
| SHTDF - MCK | 9% Poorly correlated | N/A | ||
| ACH - MCK | 7% Poorly correlated | -4.28% | ||
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