National Pension Service Reduces Position in HCA Healthcare, Inc. $HCA

National Pension Service lessened its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 6.9% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 583,185 shares of the company’s stock after selling 43,400 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $272,266,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Basepoint Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in HCA Healthcare during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Rothschild Investment LLC boosted its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 788 shares of the company’s stock valued at $368,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund grew its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 4,010.3% in the 4th quarter. United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund now owns 110,977 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,811,000 after buying an additional 108,277 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 15,524 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,248,000 after buying an additional 1,245 shares during the period. Finally, Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $5,602,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

HCA Healthcare Stock Performance

NYSE:HCA opened at $384.01 on Friday. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $330.00 and a fifty-two week high of $556.52. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $454.43 and a 200 day moving average price of $481.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $85.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.21, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.18.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $19.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $6.45 EPS. The business’s quarterly 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. Research analysts forecast that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 30.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be given a $0.78 dividend. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 16th. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 10.73%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on HCA shares. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $525.00 price target on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Leerink Partners dropped their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $573.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 27th. TD Cowen dropped their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $561.00 to $500.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 27th. KeyCorp lowered their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $550.00 to $510.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $481.00 to $436.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research 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 issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $515.77.

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.