NEW YORK - CareFusion Corp shares edged higher in initial trading on Tuesday, the Cardinal Healthspinoff's first day as an independent company.

Shares rose 20 cents, or 1 percent, to $19.70 in morning New York Stock Exchange trading.

With $3.7 billion in revenue for fiscal year 2009 that ended on June 30, San Diego-based CareFusion is one of the world's largest medical products makers. The company projects mid-single-digit revenue growth for fiscal 2010, with earnings, excluding items, in a range of $1.10 to $1.20 per share.

The spinoff is designed to allow CareFusion to focus on sales of its hospital supplies, including ventilators, drug infusion pumps, infection prevention products and inventory management systems.

It will compete with companies such as Baxter International, Hospira and Covidien.

With 222 million shares outstanding, CareFusion tallied an initial market value of about $4.4 billion. CareFusion is replacing Manitowoc in the S&P 500 index.

Cardinal shareholders received half a share of CareFusion stock for each outstanding share of Cardinal Health, they owned. The distribution was made after the close of trading on Monday to Cardinal Health shareholders of record as of Aug. 25.

Cardinal Health, which retains about an 18.5 percent stake in CareFusion, also hoped to benefit from the spinoff by narrowing its focus on its drug wholesale business.

Cardinal shares rose 4 percent to $25.82 in morning trading. (Reporting by Lewis Krauskopf; additional reporting by Susan Kelly in Chicago; Editing by Maureen Bavdek)

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