HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) Announces Earnings Results

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday. The company reported $7.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.19 by ($0.04), Zacks reports. The business had revenue of $19.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.09 billion. HCA Healthcare had a negative return on equity of 409.11% and a net margin of 8.97%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $6.45 EPS. HCA Healthcare updated its FY 2026 guidance to 29.100-31.500 EPS.

HCA Healthcare Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HCA traded down $34.11 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $439.92. The company had a trading volume of 1,877,008 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,082,793. HCA Healthcare has a twelve month low of $321.39 and a twelve month high of $556.52. The stock has a market cap of $98.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.36. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $507.59 and its 200-day simple moving average is $485.06.

HCA Healthcare Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 17th were issued a $0.78 dividend. This is a boost from HCA Healthcare’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 17th. HCA Healthcare’s payout ratio is 10.99%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on HCA shares. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on HCA Healthcare from $450.00 to $442.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. TD Cowen increased their price target on HCA Healthcare from $529.00 to $561.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on HCA Healthcare from $535.00 to $590.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Leerink Partners raised their target price on HCA Healthcare from $507.00 to $573.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on HCA Healthcare from $452.00 to $481.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $537.36.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other HCA Healthcare news, SVP Christopher F. Wyatt sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.00, for a total transaction of $2,020,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 44,379 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,411,395. This trade represents a 8.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Jennifer Berres sold 8,020 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $514.58, for a total value of $4,126,931.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 11,993 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,171,357.94. This trade represents a 40.07% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 15,214 shares of company stock worth $7,797,595 in the last three months. 1.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On HCA Healthcare

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,566,643 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,532,563,000 after buying an additional 76,039 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,194,522 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,024,535,000 after buying an additional 64,630 shares in the last quarter. Viking Global Investors LP grew its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 58.5% in the second quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 1,872,133 shares of the company’s stock valued at $717,214,000 after buying an additional 690,773 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,138,179 shares of the company’s stock valued at $531,370,000 after buying an additional 37,250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group grew its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 688,652 shares of the company’s stock valued at $321,504,000 after buying an additional 35,817 shares in the last quarter. 62.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

HCA Healthcare News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Strong demand and profit commentary: Reuters reports HCA beat quarterly profit-view expectations on robust demand for medical services, which supports near-term cash flow and operating leverage. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Revenue and net income growth: HCA reported Q1 revenue up 4.3% to $19.109B and net income modestly higher year?over?year, showing demand resilience across its hospital network. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst activity ahead of results: Some analysts revised forecasts into the quarter (pre-earnings activity), reflecting expectations volatility but not a clear directional catalyst by itself. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor focus on volume and margins: Previews noted that volume and margin trends would drive reaction — the quarter provides data but leaves questions about margin sustainability. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Slight EPS miss: HCA reported EPS of $7.15 for Q1, a small miss versus the Zacks/consensus (around $7.17–$7.19), which disappointed some short?term traders despite year?over?year EPS growth. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Cautious FY?2026 guidance range: Management set FY?26 EPS guidance of $29.10–$31.50 and revenue guidance of $76.5B–$80.0B; the wide range (and a midpoint roughly in line or slightly below some street models) left investors wary about visibility into margins and volumes. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Balance-sheet/metric flags: Commentary and data releases highlighted a negative return on equity metric and a modest net margin, which some investors view as a structural concern tied to capital allocation (large buybacks/dividends). Press Release

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.