Cardinal Health Profit Dips 3%

Dublin, Ohio -- Drug distributor and health care products maker Cardinal Health (CAH Quote) said Thursday its fiscal second-quarter profit fell 3% due to greater interest and tax costs and one-time expenses.

The company posted a profit of $316.5 million, or 88 cents per share, down slightly from $324.7 million, or 89 cents per share, in the second quarter of fiscal 2008. Excluding one-time expenses, Cardinal's profit increased to 93 cents per share from 90 cents per share.

Revenue grew 8% to $25.1 billion from $23.3 billion in the quarter ended Dec. 31.

Analysts expected 89 cents per share in profit and $24.54 billion in revenue, according to a Thomson Reuters survey.

Cardinal Health said its interest and other expenses grew, and it set aside more money for income taxes. The company also recorded a $2.4 million loss from discontinued operations.

During the quarter, revenue from Cardinal's health care chain service business grew 8%, to $24.1 billion due to increased sales to bulk pharmaceutical customers. Clinical and medical products revenue rose 7% to $1.22 billion, as Cardinal Health cited better results from drug dispensing and infusion, and its buyout of infection prevention products maker Enturia Inc. in August.

Although the clinical and medical products business brings in less than 10% of Cardinal Health's revenue, it is responsible for more than a third of the company's profit. Cardinal Health plans to spin off that unit into a separate publicly traded company, and said it will file a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission by the end of March.