Insider Selling: HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) Major Shareholder Sells $10,446.30 in Stock

HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) major shareholder Of America Corp /De/ Bank sold 477 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.90, for a total transaction of $10,446.30. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Major shareholders that own 10% or more of a company’s stock are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

HCA Healthcare Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:HCA traded down $0.09 on Friday, reaching $342.25. 1,114,475 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,343,785. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.07. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $289.98 and a fifty-two week high of $417.14. The business’s 50-day moving average is $323.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $341.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $84.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.58, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.68.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The company reported $6.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.03 by $0.19. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.16% and a return on equity of 586.47%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $5.90 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 EPS for the current year.

HCA Healthcare Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.72 per share. This is an increase from HCA Healthcare’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. HCA Healthcare’s payout ratio is 13.11%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On HCA Healthcare

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE increased its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE now owns 1,039 shares of the company’s stock worth $312,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC now owns 12,787 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,838,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd grew its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd now owns 10,592 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,153,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Prairie Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Prairie Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 700 shares of the company’s stock valued at $210,000 after buying an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. raised its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 1,195 shares of the company’s stock valued at $359,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. 62.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on HCA. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on HCA Healthcare from $406.00 to $355.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Barclays lowered their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $392.00 to $366.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $380.00 to $370.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $380.00 price target on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, KeyCorp reduced their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $420.00 to $370.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, HCA Healthcare presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $385.67.

HCA Healthcare Company Profile

HCA Healthcare, Inc, through its subsidiaries, owns and operates hospitals and related healthcare entities in the United States. It operates general and acute care hospitals that offers medical and surgical services, including inpatient care, intensive care, cardiac care, diagnostic, and emergency services; and outpatient services, such as outpatient surgery, laboratory, radiology, respiratory therapy, cardiology, and physical therapy.