Cencora Raises Quarterly Dividend 10.0% to $0.66

Cencora Inc. raised its quarterly dividend 10.0% to $0.66 a share from $0.60. The stock traded ex-dividend on November 13, 2026, and the distribution is scheduled for November 30, 2026, bringing the annual dividend to $2.64 a share.

Why the dividend changed

Cencora did not identify a single operating trigger for the increase. Management instead placed it within a capital-allocation policy supported by stronger earnings and cash generation. Chief Financial Officer Eva Boratto said the company remained focused on internal investment, strategic acquisitions, opportunistic share repurchases and “a reasonable and growing dividend.” The increase accompanied plans for further repurchases in fiscal 2027. Cencora’s fiscal 2026 earnings-call transcript

The operating backdrop was favorable. Fiscal 2026 revenue rose 5.0 percent to $337.4 billion, while adjusted operating income increased 14.0 percent to $4.8 billion. Adjusted diluted earnings per share reached $17.97, up 12.3 percent. Adjusted free cash flow totaled $3.8 billion, stronger than management’s guidance because of year-end volume, product mix and timing. Cencora’s fiscal 2026 results

Specialty healthcare investments also contributed to growth. The February 2026 OneOncology acquisition lifted fourth-quarter gross profit and operating income, while increased specialty-product and GLP-1 volumes supported U.S. revenue. Higher interest expense from acquisition financing was a counterweight. Cencora has since reorganized its reporting structure to bring specialty businesses under one leader and give investors clearer visibility into that strategy. Fiscal 2026 results Organizational restructuring announcement

Dividend track record

The latest increase extends Cencora’s dividend-growth streak to 3 consecutive years. The quarterly rate was $0.55 for the first three listed payments of 2025, increased to $0.60 for the November 14, 2025, payment cycle and remained there through August 14, 2026. The new $0.66 rate then applied to the November 13, 2026, ex-dividend date. The five-year measure is 5.5% annual growth.

Full-year distributions rose from $1.97 in 2023 to $2.08 in 2024 and $2.25 in 2025, increases of 5.4%, 5.9% and 8.2%, respectively. The record also shows the annual total falling 72.7% to $1.87 in 2022 from $6.82 in 2021. That comparison coincided with the listed payment count dropping from 8 to 4, while the subsequent quarterly-rate sequence shows increases.

Is the dividend covered?

The dividend consumes 17% of earnings. That leaves most reported profit outside the distribution and provides a substantial earnings cushion for the current quarterly rate. The low payout also gives Cencora room to direct capital toward acquisitions, debt repayment, repurchases and operating investment alongside the dividend.

SmarterDividends rates the dividend A, with a safety score of 91. The grade means very safe within the scoring framework’s 80-100 range. It reflects the low earnings payout and established payment pattern, although the grade is an assessment of current coverage rather than a guarantee of future declarations.

Yield and valuation

At a share price of $359.03, Cencora’s forward yield is 0.74%. That is below the Healthcare sector median forward yield of 1.60%, making the shares a lower-yielding income source than the typical company in the sector. At the annual rate of $2.64, 100 shares produce $264.00 in annual dividend income before taxes.

Cencora has a market value of $68.5 billion, and its one-year price return is a 2.7% loss. SmarterDividends’ fair-value estimate is $468.18, producing an undervalued verdict and 30% upside to fair value. That gap expresses the valuation model’s estimate, not a price forecast.

What to watch

The immediate calendar item is the November 30, 2026, payment. Beyond that, Cencora expects fiscal 2027 adjusted diluted earnings per share of $19.40 to $19.75 and adjusted free cash flow of about $3.5 billion. Results against those targets will show whether earnings and cash generation continue to support the company’s broader capital-deployment program. Cencora’s fiscal 2026 results and fiscal 2027 outlook

Portfolio activity is the other near-term focus. Cencora has agreed to acquire American Oncology Network, adding another community-oncology platform after OneOncology. Its outlook also assumes the sale of its Profarma interest in the first fiscal quarter and a March 31, 2027, closing of the MWI Animal Health combination with Covetrus. These transactions affect capital needs, reported segment results and the cash available across management’s stated priorities. American Oncology Network announcement Fiscal 2027 outlook