CAH vs AMRX vs MDLN Stock Comparison

Cardinal Health, Amneal Pharmaceuticals and Medline Prices as of Nov 5, 2026 Peers: Industry group
1 more company in this comparison (ZSTK) Create a free account to keep reading and compare up to 10 companies.
CAH Cardinal Health Inc
$268.03 +14.8% 1M +36.2% 1Y
Market cap
$61.95B
P/E
34.2x
Revenue (TTM)
$257.75B
Div. yield
0.77%
Drug Distribution Healthcare
7 wins
MDLN Medline Inc.
$39.76 +11.8% 1M
Market cap
$52.32B
P/E
60.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$30.68B
Div. yield
–
Medical Supplies Healthcare

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Cardinal Health leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (Cardinal Health 7, Amneal Pharmaceuticals 4). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionCAHAMRXMDLNLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $61.95B $6.21B $52.32B CAH
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 34.2x 39.5x 60.4x CAH
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 22.3x 19.8x 27.6x AMRX
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +10.0% +9.3% — CAH
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 0.7% 5.0% 1.9% AMRX
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 36.5% 17.4% 4.3% CAH
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.0x 3.8x 3.2x CAH
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.77% — — –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +36.2% +66.4% — AMRX
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +40.2%/yr +30.5%/yr — CAH
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 26.0% 34.2% 47.8% CAH
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 62/100 70/100 52/100 AMRX

Percentile Scorecard

CAHAMRXMDLN

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisCAHAMRXMDLN
Valuation 76 #7 of 26 92 #50 of 634 79 #49 of 229
Growth 67 #9 of 25 73 #168 of 608 –
Profitability 54 #12 of 25 84 #88 of 557 73 #58 of 210
Financial Health 36 #17 of 26 11 #581 of 654 43 #137 of 240
Shareholder Returns 75 #5 of 17 87 #52 of 403 14 #126 of 147
Overall 62 70 52
  • CAH ranked among 27 companies in Healthcare Payers and Distributors
  • AMRX ranked among 671 companies in Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology
  • MDLN ranked among 247 companies in Medical Devices and Diagnostics

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodCAHAMRXMDLNSPY
1 month +14.8%-4.2%+11.8% -5.9%
3 months +12.8%+7.6%+15.2% -4.6%
6 months +44.7%+41.8%-5.0% +0.2%
Year to date +30.4%+54.4%-5.3% +7.5%
1 year +36.2%+66.4%— +8.2%
3 years +163.7%+362.0%— +68.3%
3 years, per year +38.2%+66.6%— +19.0%
5 years +441.0%+278.4%— +56.5%
5 years, per year +40.2%+30.5%— +9.4%
10 years +311.3%—— +251.5%
10 years, per year +15.2%—— +13.4%

Risk

MeasureCAHAMRXMDLNSPY
Volatility, 1Y 26.0%34.2%47.8% 13.6%
Downside volatility, 1Y 24.6%31.0%48.1% 14.2%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y -0.020.630.69 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 1.391.94— 0.60
Max drawdown, 5Y -21.0%-76.2%-36.7% -25.4%
From 52-week high 0.0%-9.3%-20.5% -5.9%
52-week high $268.03$21.44$49.99 $779.14
52-week low $182.50$11.37$31.64 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleCAHAMRXMDLN
P/E now vs peer median 34.2xmedian 25.1x 39.5xmedian 17.8x 60.4xmedian 26.9x
P/S now vs peer median 0.2xmedian 0.4x 2.0xmedian 8.1x 1.7xmedian 2.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 17.9xmedian 14.2x 13.2xmedian 15.7x 21.7xmedian 17.5x
P/FCF now vs peer median 12.6xmedian 16.4x 74.7xmedian 21.0x 27.6xmedian 26.4x
P/B now vs peer median -20.5xmedian 2.6x 188.1xmedian 2.0x 2.7xmedian 2.3x
PEG now vs peer median 0.38median 1.51 0.17median 0.36 —median 0.88

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsCAHAMRXMDLN
Revenue $257.75B $3.12B $30.68B
Gross profit $10.05B $1.23B $7.90B
Operating income $2.70B $453.92M $1.74B
Net income $1.82B $215.32M $889.00M
Free cash flow $4.90B $83.11M $1.90B
R&D – $175.57M –
EPS (diluted) $7.80 $0.48 $0.44
Cash & equivalents $5.26B $127.64M $2.32B
Total debt $8.82B $2.67B $12.58B
Shares (diluted) 233.00M 328.10M 1.32B
Enterprise value $45.28B $5.49B $49.45B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricCAHAMRXMDLN
P/E 34.2x 39.5x 60.4x
P/FCF 12.6x 74.7x 27.6x
P/Operating cash flow 11.1x 30.9x 22.0x
P/S 0.2x 2.0x 1.7x
P/B -20.5x 188.1x 2.7x
P/Tangible book -20.5x -11.2x 8.7x
EV/EBITDA 17.9x 13.2x 21.7x
EV/EBIT 24.3x 19.3x 35.2x
EV/Revenue 0.3x 2.8x 2.0x
EV/FCF 13.4x 105.3x 32.3x
EV/Operating cash flow 11.7x 43.6x 25.7x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.38 0.17 –

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCAHAMRXMDLN
Revenue growth (1Y) 10.0% 9.3% –
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 7.1% 10.5% –
Gross profit growth (1Y) 17.1% 14.1% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 12.6% 14.9% –
Operating income growth (1Y) 13.6% 20.6% –
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 63.6% 32.5% –
Net income growth (1Y) 13.6% 426.4% –
Net income CAGR (3Y) 86.5% 139.1% –
EPS growth (1Y) 16.9% 4,481% –
EPS CAGR (3Y) 90.8% 237.0% –
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 11.6% -42.8% –
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 18.7% 0.4% –
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 10.1% -69.3% –
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 19.9% -17.3% –

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCAHAMRXMDLN
Gross margin 3.9% 39.3% 25.7%
EBITDA margin 1.4% 21.3% 9.2%
Operating margin 1.0% 14.6% 5.7%
Pretax margin 0.9% 6.5% 3.6%
Net margin 0.7% 5.0% 1.9%
FCF margin 1.9% 2.7% 6.2%
Operating cash flow margin 2.2% 6.4% 7.8%
Return on equity – – 4.6%
Return on assets 3.1% 5.9% 2.2%
Return on invested capital 36.5% 17.4% 4.3%
Return on capital employed 22.3% 16.4% 4.8%
Asset turnover 4.4x 0.9x 0.8x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 3.1x 0.9x 2.7x
Stock comp / revenue 0.1% 1.1% 0.4%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCAHAMRXMDLN
Debt / assets 14.8% 70.7% 31.3%
Debt / equity -2.9x 80.9x 0.6x
Net debt / EBITDA 1.0x 3.8x 3.2x
Debt / FCF 1.8x 32.1x 6.6x
Liabilities / assets 105.1% 99.1% 51.7%
Equity / assets -5.1% 0.9% 48.3%
Interest coverage 7.9x – –
Current ratio 0.9x 2.2x 4.0x
Quick ratio 0.4x 1.3x 2.4x
Cash ratio 0.1x 0.1x 1.2x
Altman Z-score 5.02 2.40 2.71

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCAHAMRXMDLN
Dividend yield 0.8% – –
Net buyback yield 2.4% 0.0% -13.5%
Shareholder yield 3.2% 0.0% -13.5%
Payout ratio (earnings) 26.8% – –
Payout ratio (FCF) 10.0% – –
Dividend growth (1Y) -1.4% – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) -1.7% – –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusCAHAMRXMDLN
Forward P/E 22.3xFY2027 19.8xFY2026 27.6xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $12.03FY2027 $0.98FY2026 $1.44FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +6.8%FY2027 +18.1%FY2026 +0.7%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +13.5% +28.6% +13.9%
Revenue, next fiscal year $272.90BFY2027 $3.27BFY2026 $32.52BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +7.3%FY2027 +8.4%FY2026 +14.4%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after -3.5% +12.0% +8.0%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCAHAMRXMDLN
Held by institutions 87.4% 51.0% 57.1%
Institutions holding 1,494 310 409
Change in shares held, QoQ +2.8% +1.3% +17.9%
Institutions buying 711 182 322
Institutions selling 559 86 69
Buyers to sellers 1.27 2.12 4.67

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

CAHAMRXMDLN
CAH 1.00 0.19 0.29
AMRX 0.19 1.00 0.18
MDLN 0.29 0.18 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, CAH, AMRX and MDLN?

Cardinal Health (CAH) is the largest by market capitalisation: Cardinal Health (CAH) $61.95B, Amneal Pharmaceuticals (AMRX) $6.21B, Medline (MDLN) $52.32B.

Which stock is cheaper, CAH, AMRX and MDLN?

Cardinal Health (CAH) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Cardinal Health (CAH) 34.2x, Amneal Pharmaceuticals (AMRX) 39.5x, Medline (MDLN) 60.4x). On next year's consensus earnings, Amneal Pharmaceuticals (AMRX) is cheapest (Cardinal Health (CAH) 22.3x, Amneal Pharmaceuticals (AMRX) 19.8x, Medline (MDLN) 27.6x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Cardinal Health (CAH) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Cardinal Health (CAH) +10.0%, Amneal Pharmaceuticals (AMRX) +9.3%.

Which company is more profitable?

Amneal Pharmaceuticals (AMRX) has the highest net margin (Cardinal Health (CAH) 0.7%, Amneal Pharmaceuticals (AMRX) 5.0%, Medline (MDLN) 1.9%). On return on invested capital, Cardinal Health (CAH) leads (Cardinal Health (CAH) 36.5%, Amneal Pharmaceuticals (AMRX) 17.4%, Medline (MDLN) 4.3%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Amneal Pharmaceuticals (AMRX) returned the most: Cardinal Health (CAH) +36.2%, Amneal Pharmaceuticals (AMRX) +66.4%. Over five years, Cardinal Health (CAH) compounded fastest (Cardinal Health (CAH) +40.2%/yr, Amneal Pharmaceuticals (AMRX) +30.5%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Cardinal Health (CAH) 0.77%. Amneal Pharmaceuticals (AMRX) and Medline (MDLN) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Cardinal Health (CAH) has been the steadiest (Cardinal Health (CAH) 26.0%, Amneal Pharmaceuticals (AMRX) 34.2%, Medline (MDLN) 47.8%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, CAH, AMRX and MDLN?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Cardinal Health (CAH) leads on 7. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.