Prana Capital Management LP Invests $1.03 Million in HCA Healthcare, Inc. $HCA

Prana Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 2,405 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,025,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,152,408,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 6,115.3% during the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 911,096 shares of the company’s stock worth $388,309,000 after purchasing an additional 896,437 shares in the last quarter. Viking Global Investors LP boosted its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 58.5% in the 2nd 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. Danske Bank A S acquired a new stake in HCA Healthcare during the 3rd quarter worth $115,530,000. Finally, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI boosted its stake in HCA Healthcare by 3,755.9% in the third quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 269,912 shares of the company’s stock valued at $115,036,000 after acquiring an additional 262,912 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

HCA Healthcare Trading Down 2.8%

Shares of HCA opened at $510.34 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $508.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $472.06. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 12-month low of $314.43 and a 12-month high of $556.52. The stock has a market cap of $114.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.98, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.34.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The company reported $8.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.37 by $0.64. The company had revenue of $19.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.67 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 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $6.22 earnings per share. HCA Healthcare has set its FY 2026 guidance at 29.100-31.500 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. This is a positive change from HCA Healthcare’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 17th. HCA Healthcare’s payout ratio is 10.15%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $498.09, for a total transaction of $747,135.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 30,003 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,944,194.27. This represents a 4.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael R. Mcalevey sold 1,694 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $533.37, for a total transaction of $903,528.78. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 8,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,721,924.61. This represents a 16.06% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 15,214 shares of company stock valued at $7,797,595. 1.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HCA has been the topic of several research reports. KeyCorp set a $503.00 price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Morgan Stanley lowered HCA Healthcare from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $425.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Monday, December 15th. Wall Street Zen cut HCA Healthcare from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on HCA Healthcare from $500.00 to $558.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein set a $541.00 price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $537.73.

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.