Franklin Resources Inc. Acquires 60,967 Shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. $HCA

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 5.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,234,371 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 60,967 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.54% of HCA Healthcare worth $576,278,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of HCA. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in HCA Healthcare in the 4th quarter valued at $1,262,513,000. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd bought a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 4th quarter worth $374,037,000. Viking Global Investors LP boosted its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 58.5% during the second quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 1,872,133 shares of the company’s stock worth $717,214,000 after purchasing an additional 690,773 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 4,545.5% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 663,337 shares of the company’s stock worth $309,686,000 after buying an additional 649,058 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in HCA Healthcare during the third quarter worth $115,530,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on HCA. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on HCA Healthcare from $450.00 to $442.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $593.00 to $534.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Stephens dropped their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $560.00 to $530.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Wall Street Zen lowered HCA Healthcare from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $481.00 to $436.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 27th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, HCA Healthcare presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $506.14.

HCA Healthcare Stock Down 3.0%

HCA stock opened at $360.99 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $437.12 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $476.37. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a twelve month low of $330.00 and a twelve month high of $556.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $80.08 billion, a PE ratio of 12.41, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.12.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 24th. The company reported $7.15 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.19 by ($0.04). HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.89% and a negative return on equity of 295.93%. The firm had revenue of $19.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $6.45 EPS. HCA Healthcare’s revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. HCA Healthcare has set its FY 2026 guidance at 29.100-31.500 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 30.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be given a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 16th. HCA Healthcare’s payout ratio is presently 10.73%.

HCA Healthcare Profile

HCA Healthcare is a for‑profit operator of healthcare facilities headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1968, the company owns and operates a network of hospitals and related healthcare facilities and has grown through organic expansion and acquisitions to become a large provider of inpatient and outpatient services.

The company’s core activities include the operation of acute care hospitals, freestanding surgical and emergency centers, and outpatient clinics. HCA’s services encompass inpatient care, surgical services, emergency medicine, diagnostic imaging and laboratory testing, and various outpatient and ambulatory care offerings.