CAH vs MDLN vs ZSTK Stock Comparison

Cardinal Health, Medline and ZeroStack Prices as of Oct 29, 2026 Peers: Industry group
CAH Cardinal Health Inc
$251.10 +12.1% 1M +52.7% 1Y
Market cap
$59.13B
P/E
34.5x
Revenue (TTM)
$254.25B
Div. yield
0.01%
Drug Distribution Healthcare
6 wins
MDLN Medline Inc.
$32.00 -8.5% 1M
Market cap
$27.54B
P/E
32.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$28.57B
Div. yield
–
Medical Supplies Healthcare
3 wins
ZSTK ZeroStack Corp.
$2.93 -39.5% 1M -71.7% 1Y
Market cap
$29.09M
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$40.03M
Div. yield
–
Drug Distribution Healthcare
2 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Cardinal Health leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Cardinal Health 6, Medline 3, ZeroStack 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionCAHMDLNZSTKLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $59.13B $27.54B $29.09M CAH
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 34.5x 32.9x -0.2x MDLN
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 20.9x 22.2x — CAH
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +14.2% — +27.3% ZSTK
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 0.7% 2.9% -444.3% MDLN
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 33.9% 5.4% -852.2% CAH
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.1x 3.2x 0.0x ZSTK
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.01% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +52.7% — -71.7% CAH
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +39.4%/yr — -75.6%/yr CAH
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 29.5% 44.4% 169.3% CAH
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 68/100 68/100 26/100 MDLN

Percentile Scorecard

CAHMDLNZSTK

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

AxisCAHMDLNZSTK
Valuation 75 #7 of 25 85 #36 of 227 17 #21 of 25
Growth 78 #6 of 24 – 44 #14 of 24
Profitability 65 #9 of 24 74 #54 of 202 9 #22 of 24
Financial Health 40 #16 of 26 41 #137 of 233 60 #11 of 26
Shareholder Returns 80 #4 of 16 72 #37 of 130 0 #16 of 16
Overall 68 68 26
  • CAH ranked among 27 companies in Healthcare Payers and Distributors
  • MDLN ranked among 247 companies in Medical Devices and Diagnostics
  • ZSTK ranked among 27 companies in Healthcare Payers and Distributors

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodCAHMDLNZSTKSPY
1 month +12.1%-8.5%-39.5% +0.7%
3 months +10.5%-18.2%+90.3% +3.7%
6 months +30.2%-28.0%-50.8% +7.1%
Year to date +22.2%-23.8%-53.2% +12.8%
1 year +52.7%—-71.7% +11.9%
3 years +175.8%—-89.8% +85.2%
3 years, per year +40.3%—-53.3% +22.8%
5 years +425.2%—-99.9% +67.6%
5 years, per year +39.4%—-75.6% +10.9%
10 years +272.0%—— +262.0%
10 years, per year +14.0%—— +13.7%

Risk

MeasureCAHMDLNZSTKSPY
Volatility, 1Y 29.5%44.4%169.3% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 24.6%48.3%132.1% 12.6%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y -0.110.611.68 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 1.79—-0.42 0.94
Max drawdown, 5Y -21.0%-36.7%-100.0% -25.4%
From 52-week high -2.5%-36.0%-75.2% -1.2%
52-week high $257.54$49.99$11.80 $779.14
52-week low $164.47$31.64$1.37 $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.

MultipleCAHMDLNZSTK
P/E now vs peer median 34.6xmedian 24.3x 32.8xmedian 28.7x -0.2xmedian 24.3x
P/S now vs peer median 0.2xmedian 0.3x 1.5xmedian 3.0x 0.7xmedian 0.3x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 17.5xmedian 12.9x 16.8xmedian 17.8x -0.1xmedian 12.9x
P/FCF now vs peer median 12.9xmedian 16.4x 26.4xmedian 26.4x -5.2xmedian 16.4x
P/B now vs peer median -20.3xmedian 2.5x 2.2xmedian 2.4x 2.1xmedian 2.5x
PEG now vs peer median 0.50median 1.36 —median 0.99 0.00median 1.36

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 monthsCAHMDLNZSTK
Revenue $254.25B $28.57B $40.03M
Gross profit $9.77B $7.79B $5.26M
Operating income $2.61B $2.03B -$239.39M
Net income $1.72B $1.03B -$177.88M
Free cash flow $4.53B $1.59B -$5.64M
EPS (diluted) $7.23 $0.97 $-17.86
Cash & equivalents $4.86B $2.33B $2.64M
Total debt $8.89B $12.58B $2.41M
Shares (diluted) 237.00M 861.00M 9.96M
Enterprise value $42.97B $20.49B $5.77M

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
MetricCAHMDLNZSTK
P/E 34.6x 32.8x -0.2x
P/FCF 12.9x 26.4x -5.2x
P/Operating cash flow 11.3x 21.0x -5.2x
P/S 0.2x 1.5x 0.7x
P/B -20.3x 2.2x 2.1x
P/Tangible book -20.3x 7.6x 2.1x
EV/EBITDA 17.5x 16.8x -0.1x
EV/EBIT 23.9x 25.6x -0.1x
EV/Revenue 0.2x 1.8x 0.7x
EV/FCF 13.8x 32.7x -5.1x
EV/Operating cash flow 12.1x 25.9x -5.2x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.50 – 0.00

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCAHMDLNZSTK
Revenue growth (1Y) 14.2% – 27.3%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 7.4% – -13.1%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 19.7% – 171.8%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 12.3% – -32.4%
Operating income growth (1Y) 14.9% – -2,574%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 50.2% – -57.0%
Net income growth (1Y) 9.8% – -1,263%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 63.8% – -37.3%
EPS growth (1Y) 12.1% – 24.9%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 69.2% – 64.4%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 115.9% – 37.6%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 22.1% – 23.9%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 144.6% – 37.9%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 24.2% – 25.2%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCAHMDLNZSTK
Gross margin 3.8% 27.3% 13.1%
EBITDA margin 1.4% 10.8% -597.5%
Operating margin 1.0% 7.1% -598.0%
Pretax margin 0.9% 4.3% -436.1%
Net margin 0.7% 2.9% -444.3%
FCF margin 1.8% 5.6% -14.1%
Operating cash flow margin 2.0% 7.0% -14.0%
Return on equity – 5.4% -702.9%
Return on assets 3.0% 2.6% -505.5%
Return on invested capital 33.9% 5.4% -852.2%
Return on capital employed 20.0% 5.6% -994.1%
Asset turnover 4.5x 0.7x 1.1x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 3.0x 2.0x 0.0x
Stock comp / revenue 0.1% 0.3% 13.1%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCAHMDLNZSTK
Debt / assets 15.5% 32.0% 9.6%
Debt / equity -3.1x 0.7x 0.2x
Net debt / EBITDA 1.1x 3.2x 0.0x
Debt / FCF 2.0x 7.9x -0.4x
Liabilities / assets 105.0% 51.5% 45.1%
Equity / assets -5.0% 48.5% 54.9%
Interest coverage 7.5x – –
Current ratio 0.9x 4.3x 0.9x
Quick ratio 0.4x 2.3x 0.7x
Cash ratio 0.1x 1.0x 0.2x
Altman Z-score 5.11 2.42 -47.11

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCAHMDLNZSTK
Dividend yield 0.8% – –
Net buyback yield 2.3% 0.0% -51.5%
Shareholder yield 3.1% 0.0% -51.5%
Payout ratio (earnings) 28.5% – –
Payout ratio (FCF) 10.9% – –
Dividend growth (1Y) -0.6% – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) -2.2% – –

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.

ConsensusCAHMDLNZSTK
Forward P/E 20.9xFY2027 22.2xFY2026 –
EPS, next fiscal year $12.03FY2027 $1.44FY2026 $-4.29FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +6.8%FY2027 +0.7%FY2026 –
EPS growth, the year after +13.5% +13.9% –
Revenue, next fiscal year $272.90BFY2027 $32.52BFY2026 $31.29MFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +7.3%FY2027 +14.4%FY2026 -12.3%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after -3.5% +8.0% -10.3%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCAHMDLNZSTK
Held by institutions 87.4% 85.5% –
Institutions holding 1,492 408 –
Change in shares held, QoQ +2.8% +17.9% –
Institutions buying 712 322 –
Institutions selling 556 69 –
Buyers to sellers 1.28 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.

CAHMDLNZSTK
CAH 1.00 0.26 -0.01
MDLN 0.26 1.00 0.06
ZSTK -0.01 0.06 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, CAH, MDLN and ZSTK?

Cardinal Health (CAH) is the largest by market capitalisation: Cardinal Health (CAH) $59.13B, Medline (MDLN) $27.54B, ZeroStack (ZSTK) $29.09M.

Which stock is cheaper, CAH, MDLN and ZSTK?

Medline (MDLN) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Cardinal Health (CAH) 34.5x, Medline (MDLN) 32.9x, ZeroStack (ZSTK) -0.2x). On next year's consensus earnings, Cardinal Health (CAH) is cheapest (Cardinal Health (CAH) 20.9x, Medline (MDLN) 22.2x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

ZeroStack (ZSTK) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Cardinal Health (CAH) +14.2%, ZeroStack (ZSTK) +27.3%.

Which company is more profitable?

Medline (MDLN) has the highest net margin (Cardinal Health (CAH) 0.7%, Medline (MDLN) 2.9%, ZeroStack (ZSTK) -444.3%). On return on invested capital, Cardinal Health (CAH) leads (Cardinal Health (CAH) 33.9%, Medline (MDLN) 5.4%, ZeroStack (ZSTK) -852.2%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Cardinal Health (CAH) returned the most: Cardinal Health (CAH) +52.7%, ZeroStack (ZSTK) -71.7%. Over five years, Cardinal Health (CAH) compounded fastest (Cardinal Health (CAH) +39.4%/yr, ZeroStack (ZSTK) -75.6%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Cardinal Health (CAH) 0.01%, Medline (MDLN) 0.00%, ZeroStack (ZSTK) 0.00%. Medline (MDLN) and ZeroStack (ZSTK) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Cardinal Health (CAH) has been the steadiest (Cardinal Health (CAH) 29.5%, Medline (MDLN) 44.4%, ZeroStack (ZSTK) 169.3%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

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

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 6. 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.