HCA Healthcare, Inc. $HCA Shares Sold by Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada lowered its holdings in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 14.0% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 886,505 shares of the company’s stock after selling 144,678 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $419,529,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 64,237 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,990,000 after buying an additional 3,724 shares during the period. Advisors Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 61.5% in the 4th quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC now owns 6,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,192,000 after purchasing an additional 2,604 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its position in HCA Healthcare by 11.9% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,311,112 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,078,966,000 after purchasing an additional 245,887 shares in the last quarter. Liberty Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in HCA Healthcare during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,905,000. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 10.0% in the 4th quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 55,273 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,805,000 after acquiring an additional 5,019 shares during the period. 62.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

HCA Healthcare Stock Up 7.3%

Shares of HCA Healthcare stock opened at $417.94 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $386.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $452.53. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $339.82 and a fifty-two week high of $556.52. The firm has a market cap of $92.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.12.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The company reported $7.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.56 by $0.03. HCA Healthcare had a negative return on equity of 244.79% and a net margin of 8.77%.The business had revenue of $20.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.76 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $6.84 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 29.21 earnings per share for the current year.

HCA Healthcare Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 16th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio is 10.45%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on HCA shares. Raymond James Financial set a $528.00 target price on HCA Healthcare in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $525.00 to $475.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $425.00 to $380.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Oppenheimer reduced their price target on HCA Healthcare from $520.00 to $485.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $450.00 target price on HCA Healthcare in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $465.05.

Trending Headlines about HCA Healthcare

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

• Positive Sentiment: HCA reported second-quarter adjusted earnings of $7.59 per share, narrowly exceeding the $7.56 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 8.7% year over year to $20.23 billion and surpassed expectations. The earnings beat and strong revenue growth likely supported investor confidence in the hospital operator. Almost all of HCA’s Affordable Care Act patients are going uninsured. Here’s how that affected Q2
• Positive Sentiment: Despite lowering its price target from $525 to $475, Mizuho maintained an “outperform” rating, indicating it still sees meaningful upside for HCA after the post-earnings reassessment. Mizuho HCA price-target update
• Positive Sentiment: HCA declared a quarterly dividend of $0.78 per share, payable September 30 to shareholders of record September 16. The dividend provides ongoing shareholder return, although its indicated yield is relatively modest. HCA dividend announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: HCA appointed new hospital leadership, naming Jordan Fulkerson chief financial officer of HCA Florida Memorial Hospital and promoting a new chief executive for two Tampa-area hospitals. The changes are unlikely to materially affect near-term valuation. Jordan Fulkerson named CFO
• Negative Sentiment: Several firms reduced HCA price targets following the quarterly report. Oppenheimer, Truist, KeyCorp, Barclays and Baird all lowered their targets, suggesting analysts remain concerned about the outlook even though most retained positive or neutral ratings. HCA analysts slash forecasts after Q2 results
• Negative Sentiment: Nearly all of HCA’s Affordable Care Act patients reportedly became uninsured, raising concerns about payer mix, uncompensated care and reimbursement pressure. ACA patient coverage impact
• Negative Sentiment: Dogwood notified North Carolina officials that HCA may be in “potential noncompliance” with its Mission Hospital sale contract, adding regulatory and operational risk. Mission Hospital sale contract concerns
• Negative Sentiment: Pomerantz LLP announced an investigation into potential claims on behalf of HCA investors. The announcement may add legal overhang, although it does not establish wrongdoing. Pomerantz investor alert

HCA Healthcare Company 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.