AustralianSuper Pty Ltd Increases Stock Holdings in HCA Healthcare, Inc. $HCA

AustralianSuper Pty Ltd increased its position in shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 164.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 47,191 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 29,341 shares during the period. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $20,113,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new stake in HCA Healthcare during the second quarter valued at $27,000. Chung Wu Investment Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Clearstead Trust LLC raised its stake in HCA Healthcare by 311.8% in the second quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 70 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 82.9% in the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 75 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 2nd quarter worth $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on HCA. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on HCA Healthcare from $423.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Raymond James Financial set a $525.00 price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $430.00 to $470.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Finally, Stephens lifted their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 27th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $512.43.

Trending Headlines about HCA Healthcare

Here are the key news stories impacting HCA Healthcare this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results and stronger capital actions — HCA reported $8.01 EPS (above estimates), raised 2026 guidance and outlined a $10B share buyback, supporting medium?term earnings power. HCA Healthcare Reports Fourth Quarter 2025 Results and Provides 2026 Guidance
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts are upping targets — multiple brokers (Jefferies, RBC, Deutsche Bank, Truist) raised price targets and reiterated buy/outperform views after the quarter, suggesting upside remains for the shares. Analyst price target raises
• Positive Sentiment: Quality recognition: Healthgrades accolades — 44 HCA hospitals made Healthgrades’ lists, including three among America’s 50 Best Hospitals, a boost to reputation and referral strength. HCA Healthcare Hospitals Named on America’s 50 Best Hospitals List for 2026 by Healthgrades
• Positive Sentiment: Outpatient expansion and M&A optionality — HCA is accelerating outpatient growth and sees more acquisition opportunities, which supports margin expansion and revenue diversification. HCA ramps up outpatient growth, sees more acquisition opportunities
• Positive Sentiment: Local expansion: more urgent care/ER footprint — HCA is opening additional ER capacity in Southwest Florida, signaling continued local market growth. HCA building ER south of Fort Myers but what happened to hospital?
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst narrative shifting — coverage pieces note a shifting story post?reset as investors re?weigh growth vs. policy risk; this could reprice expectations but isn’t a clear directional catalyst. Why Analysts See The Story Shifting For HCA Healthcare (HCA) After Target Reset
• Negative Sentiment: Policy and reimbursement risk — HCA flagged exposure to federal policy changes and potential reimbursement headwinds that could pressure near?term margins. HCA Healthcare braces for impacts as federal policy shifts take hold
• Negative Sentiment: ACA exchange impact — management disclosed a $600M–$900M headwind from ACA exchanges for 2026, a meaningful near?term drag even as guidance remains constructive. HCA Healthcare unveils bullish 2026 guidance despite $600M-$900M ACA exchanges hit
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue slightly missed estimates — revenue for the quarter was a touch below Street estimates, which may have prompted profit?taking after recent gains. HCA: Q4 Earnings Snapshot

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Michael R. Mcalevey sold 3,892 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $473.79, for a total transaction of $1,843,990.68. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 3,487 shares in the company, valued at $1,652,105.73. The trade was a 52.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

HCA Healthcare Trading Down 2.0%

Shares of NYSE:HCA opened at $481.58 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $109.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.36. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 12 month low of $295.00 and a 12 month high of $527.55. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $481.14 and a 200-day moving average price of $436.60.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The company reported $8.01 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.37 by $0.64. HCA Healthcare had a negative return on equity of 409.11% and a net margin of 8.97%.The business had revenue of $19.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.67 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $6.22 EPS. HCA Healthcare’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. HCA Healthcare has set its FY 2026 guidance at 29.100-31.500 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be issued a $0.78 dividend. This is a boost from HCA Healthcare’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 10.15%.

About HCA Healthcare

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.