HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) Lowered to Hold Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Wednesday morning.

HCA has been the topic of several other research reports. Barclays cut their price target on HCA Healthcare from $392.00 to $366.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $405.00 to $384.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $380.00 to $370.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $405.00 price target on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Truist Financial cut their price target on HCA Healthcare from $430.00 to $390.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $385.67.

HCA Healthcare Trading Down 3.3 %

HCA traded down $11.18 on Wednesday, reaching $327.35. 780,503 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,377,556. The company has a market cap of $80.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.48. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $327.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $337.50. HCA Healthcare has a one year low of $289.98 and a one year high of $417.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.07.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The company reported $6.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.03 by $0.19. HCA Healthcare had a return on equity of 586.47% and a net margin of 8.16%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $5.90 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that HCA Healthcare will post 24.98 earnings per share for the current year.

HCA Healthcare Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This is a positive change from HCA Healthcare’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. HCA Healthcare’s payout ratio is currently 13.11%.

Insider Activity at HCA Healthcare

In related news, SVP Jennifer Berres sold 9,533 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $322.59, for a total value of $3,075,250.47. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 15,412 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,971,757.08. The trade was a 38.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On HCA Healthcare

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in HCA. IHT Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in HCA Healthcare during the 3rd quarter worth about $207,000. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC boosted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 3.3% in the third quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 6,735 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,737,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the period. MML Investors Services LLC lifted its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 31.7% during the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 17,816 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,241,000 after buying an additional 4,285 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 22.3% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 571,975 shares of the company’s stock worth $232,467,000 after acquiring an additional 104,409 shares during the period. Finally, Vestcor Inc grew its stake in HCA Healthcare by 10.4% during the 3rd quarter. Vestcor Inc now owns 10,465 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,253,000 after purchasing an additional 987 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

HCA Healthcare Company Profile

HCA Healthcare, Inc, through its subsidiaries, owns and operates hospitals and related healthcare entities in the United States. It operates general and acute care hospitals that offers medical and surgical services, including inpatient care, intensive care, cardiac care, diagnostic, and emergency services; and outpatient services, such as outpatient surgery, laboratory, radiology, respiratory therapy, cardiology, and physical therapy.