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Side-by-side financial comparison of Cardinal Health (CAH) and Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA). Click either name above to swap in a different company.
Cardinal Health is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($65.6B vs $39.0B, roughly 1.7× Walgreens Boots Alliance). Cardinal Health runs the higher net margin — 0.7% vs -0.4%, a 1.2% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, Cardinal Health posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (19.6% vs 7.2%). Over the past eight quarters, Cardinal Health's revenue compounded faster (6.9% CAGR vs 4.9%).
Cardinal Health, Inc. is an American multinational health care services company, and the 15th highest revenue generating company in the United States. Headquartered in Dublin, Ohio, the company specializes in the distribution of pharmaceuticals and medical products, serving more than 100,000 locations. The company also manufactures medical and surgical product, including gloves, surgical apparel, and fluid management products.
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) was an American multinational holding company headquartered in Deerfield, Illinois. The company was formed on December 31, 2014, after Walgreens bought the 55% stake in Alliance Boots that it did not already own. The total price of the acquisition was $4.9 billion in cash and 144.3 million common shares with fair value of $10.7 billion. Walgreens had previously purchased 45% of the company for $4.0 billion and 83.
CAH vs WBA — Head-to-Head
Income Statement — Q2 FY2026 vs Q3 FY2025
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $65.6B | $39.0B |
| Net Profit | $467.0M | $-175.0M |
| Gross Margin | 3.7% | 16.7% |
| Operating Margin | 1.1% | 0.1% |
| Net Margin | 0.7% | -0.4% |
| Revenue YoY | 19.6% | 7.2% |
| Net Profit YoY | -7.7% | -150.9% |
| EPS (diluted) | — | $-0.20 |
Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.
8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend
Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.
| Q4 25 | $65.6B | — | ||
| Q2 25 | $60.2B | $39.0B | ||
| Q1 25 | $54.9B | $38.6B | ||
| Q4 24 | $55.3B | $39.5B | ||
| Q3 24 | $52.3B | $37.5B | ||
| Q2 24 | $59.7B | $36.4B | ||
| Q1 24 | $54.9B | $37.1B | ||
| Q4 23 | $57.4B | $36.7B |
| Q4 25 | $467.0M | — | ||
| Q2 25 | $239.0M | $-175.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | $506.0M | $-2.9B | ||
| Q4 24 | $400.0M | $-265.0M | ||
| Q3 24 | $416.0M | $-3.0B | ||
| Q2 24 | $236.0M | $344.0M | ||
| Q1 24 | $258.0M | $-5.9B | ||
| Q4 23 | $353.0M | $-67.0M |
| Q4 25 | 3.7% | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 3.7% | 16.7% | ||
| Q1 25 | 3.9% | 18.0% | ||
| Q4 24 | 3.5% | 17.2% | ||
| Q3 24 | 3.6% | 16.7% | ||
| Q2 24 | 3.1% | 17.8% | ||
| Q1 24 | 3.5% | 19.0% | ||
| Q4 23 | 3.2% | 18.4% |
| Q4 25 | 1.1% | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.7% | 0.1% | ||
| Q1 25 | 1.3% | -14.4% | ||
| Q4 24 | 1.0% | -0.6% | ||
| Q3 24 | 1.1% | -2.6% | ||
| Q2 24 | 0.7% | 0.3% | ||
| Q1 24 | 0.7% | -35.5% | ||
| Q4 23 | 0.8% | -0.1% |
| Q4 25 | 0.7% | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.4% | -0.4% | ||
| Q1 25 | 0.9% | -7.4% | ||
| Q4 24 | 0.7% | -0.7% | ||
| Q3 24 | 0.8% | -8.0% | ||
| Q2 24 | 0.4% | 0.9% | ||
| Q1 24 | 0.5% | -15.9% | ||
| Q4 23 | 0.6% | -0.2% |
| Q4 25 | — | — | ||
| Q2 25 | — | $-0.20 | ||
| Q1 25 | — | $-3.30 | ||
| Q4 24 | — | $-0.31 | ||
| Q3 24 | $1.70 | $-3.48 | ||
| Q2 24 | $0.86 | $0.40 | ||
| Q1 24 | $1.07 | $-6.85 | ||
| Q4 23 | $1.50 | $-0.08 |
Balance Sheet & Financial Strength
Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand | $2.8B | $830.0M |
| Total DebtLower is stronger | $8.3B | $7.4B |
| Stockholders' EquityBook value | $-2.9B | $7.2B |
| Total Assets | $58.1B | $69.4B |
| Debt / EquityLower = less leverage | — | 1.03× |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | $2.8B | — | ||
| Q2 25 | $3.9B | $830.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | $3.3B | $1.1B | ||
| Q4 24 | $3.8B | $1.2B | ||
| Q3 24 | $2.9B | $3.1B | ||
| Q2 24 | $5.3B | $703.0M | ||
| Q1 24 | $3.7B | $668.0M | ||
| Q4 23 | $4.6B | $784.0M |
| Q4 25 | $8.3B | — | ||
| Q2 25 | $8.0B | $7.4B | ||
| Q1 25 | $7.1B | $8.0B | ||
| Q4 24 | $7.1B | $8.1B | ||
| Q3 24 | $4.2B | $9.6B | ||
| Q2 24 | $4.7B | — | ||
| Q1 24 | $4.7B | — | ||
| Q4 23 | $3.5B | — |
| Q4 25 | $-2.9B | — | ||
| Q2 25 | $-2.8B | $7.2B | ||
| Q1 25 | $-2.9B | $7.1B | ||
| Q4 24 | $-3.0B | $9.9B | ||
| Q3 24 | $-3.3B | $10.4B | ||
| Q2 24 | $-3.2B | $13.6B | ||
| Q1 24 | $-3.3B | $13.5B | ||
| Q4 23 | $-3.4B | $19.5B |
| Q4 25 | $58.1B | — | ||
| Q2 25 | $53.1B | $69.4B | ||
| Q1 25 | $49.9B | $70.2B | ||
| Q4 24 | $47.0B | $78.5B | ||
| Q3 24 | $43.1B | $81.0B | ||
| Q2 24 | $45.1B | $83.0B | ||
| Q1 24 | $45.9B | $84.2B | ||
| Q4 23 | $46.6B | $97.8B |
| Q4 25 | — | — | ||
| Q2 25 | — | 1.03× | ||
| Q1 25 | — | 1.13× | ||
| Q4 24 | — | 0.81× | ||
| Q3 24 | — | 0.92× | ||
| Q2 24 | — | — | ||
| Q1 24 | — | — | ||
| Q4 23 | — | — |
Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency
How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Operating Cash FlowLast quarter | — | $584.0M |
| Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex | — | $336.0M |
| FCF MarginFCF / Revenue | — | 0.9% |
| Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue | — | 0.6% |
| Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit | — | — |
| TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters | — | $580.0M |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | — | — | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.5B | $584.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | $2.9B | $-199.0M | ||
| Q4 24 | $-400.0M | $-140.0M | ||
| Q3 24 | $-1.6B | $1.3B | ||
| Q2 24 | $2.1B | $604.0M | ||
| Q1 24 | $-49.0M | $-637.0M | ||
| Q4 23 | $1.2B | $-281.0M |
| Q4 25 | — | — | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.3B | $336.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | $2.8B | $-418.0M | ||
| Q4 24 | $-499.0M | $-424.0M | ||
| Q3 24 | $-1.7B | $1.1B | ||
| Q2 24 | $1.9B | $327.0M | ||
| Q1 24 | $-161.0M | $-989.0M | ||
| Q4 23 | $1.1B | $-787.0M |
| Q4 25 | — | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 2.2% | 0.9% | ||
| Q1 25 | 5.1% | -1.1% | ||
| Q4 24 | -0.9% | -1.1% | ||
| Q3 24 | -3.3% | 2.9% | ||
| Q2 24 | 3.2% | 0.9% | ||
| Q1 24 | -0.3% | -2.7% | ||
| Q4 23 | 1.9% | -2.1% |
| Q4 25 | — | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.4% | 0.6% | ||
| Q1 25 | 0.2% | 0.6% | ||
| Q4 24 | 0.2% | 0.7% | ||
| Q3 24 | 0.2% | 0.7% | ||
| Q2 24 | 0.3% | 0.8% | ||
| Q1 24 | 0.2% | 1.0% | ||
| Q4 23 | 0.2% | 1.4% |
| Q4 25 | — | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 6.39× | — | ||
| Q1 25 | 5.76× | — | ||
| Q4 24 | -1.00× | — | ||
| Q3 24 | -3.96× | — | ||
| Q2 24 | 8.80× | 1.76× | ||
| Q1 24 | -0.19× | — | ||
| Q4 23 | 3.37× | — |
Financial Flow Comparison
Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.
Revenue Breakdown by Segment
CAH
| Pharmaceutical And Specialty Solutions | $60.7B | 92% |
| GMPD | $3.3B | 5% |
| At Home Solutions | $1.2B | 2% |
| Nuclear Precision Health Solutions | $440.0M | 1% |
| Opti Freight Logistics | $99.0M | 0% |
WBA
| Pharmacy | $24.4B | 63% |
| Retail | $6.3B | 16% |
| International Reportable Segment | $6.2B | 16% |
| US Healthcare | $2.1B | 5% |
