Cardinal Health Board of Directors Approves Quarterly Dividend, Authorizes Increase to Share Repurchase Program, Announces Board Leadership Changes

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Aug 06, 2014, 04:05 ET

DUBLIN, Ohio, Aug. 6, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Cardinal Health today announced that its board of directors approved a cash dividend of $0.3425 per common share payable on Oct. 15, 2014, to shareholders of record at the close of business on Oct. 1, 2014.

The board of directors also authorized an increase by $1 billion to its existing share repurchase program announced on Oct. 31, 2013. With this addition, the Cardinal Health program has approximately $1.7 billion available for share repurchases and expires on Dec. 31, 2016.

Also, John F. Finn, a Cardinal Health director since 1994, has informed the company that he has decided not to stand for re-election when his term expires at the 2014 annual meeting of shareholders. Effective Nov. 1, 2014, the board has appointed Gregory B. Kenny as lead director and chair of the Nominating and Governance Committee. Kenny, who has served as a director since 2007, will succeed Finn, lead director since 2009 and chair of the Nominating and Governance Committee since 2012.

"John's impact on Cardinal Health is incalculable. For two decades, John has been a source of insight, experience, instinct and collaboration," said George Barrett, chairman and CEO of Cardinal Health. "As lead director, he has played an extremely influential role on our Board and has been an extraordinary partner to me. I've come to depend on his keen judgment. I know I speak for all of us in wishing John the very best."

In addition, effective Nov. 1, David P. King will become chair of the Human Resources and Compensation Committee. Clayton M. Jones also has assumed the role of chair of the Audit Committee.

About Cardinal Health
Headquartered in Dublin, Ohio, Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE: CAH) is a $91 billion health care services company that improves the cost-effectiveness of health care. As the business behind health care, Cardinal Health helps pharmacies, hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, clinical laboratories and physician offices focus on patient care while reducing costs, enhancing efficiency and improving quality. Cardinal Health is an essential link in the health care supply chain, providing pharmaceuticals and medical products and services to more than 100,000 locations each day and is also the industry-leading direct-to-home medical supplies distributor. The company is a leading manufacturer of medical and surgical products, including gloves, surgical apparel and fluid management products. In addition, the company operates the nation's largest network of radiopharmacies that dispense products to aid in the early diagnosis and treatment of disease. Ranked #22 on the Fortune 500, Cardinal Health employs 34,000 people worldwide. More information about the company may be found at www.cardinalhealth.com and @CardinalHealth on Twitter.