HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) Upgraded at BMO Capital Markets

Key Points

• BMO Capital Markets upgraded HCA Healthcare to “strong buy,” while analysts overall maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $463.70.
• HCA reported quarterly earnings of $7.59 per share, exceeding estimates, while revenue rose 8.7% year over year to $20.23 billion.
• HCA shares opened at $436.71, down 0.3%, with institutional investors owning 62.73% of the company’s stock.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at BMO Capital Markets to a "strong-buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, Zacks reports.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $635.00 to $579.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $490.00 to $425.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 20th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on HCA Healthcare from $425.00 to $380.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on HCA Healthcare from $535.00 to $495.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Oppenheimer dropped their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $520.00 to $485.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, HCA Healthcare has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $463.70.

HCA Healthcare Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE HCA opened at $436.71 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $94.55 billion, a PE ratio of 14.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.10. HCA Healthcare has a 52-week low of $353.99 and a 52-week high of $556.52. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $409.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $426.80.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 24th. The company reported $7.59 earnings per share 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.76 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $6.84 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that HCA Healthcare will post 29.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of HCA Healthcare

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 2nd quarter worth about $5,069,974,000. Capital World Investors grew its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 4,999,422 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,334,040,000 after purchasing an additional 40,086 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 20.5% during the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,707,473 shares of the company's stock worth $1,835,397,000 after purchasing an additional 799,761 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,663,705 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,702,738,000 after buying an additional 13,565 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the fourth quarter valued at $1,262,513,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.73% of the company's stock.

About HCA Healthcare

HCA Healthcare, Inc NYSE: HCA is a healthcare services company that operates hospitals and other healthcare facilities. Its network provides a broad range of medical services, including emergency care, inpatient and outpatient treatment, surgery, diagnostic services, and maternity care.

The company also operates ambulatory surgery centers, urgent care facilities, physician practices, and other outpatient locations. HCA Healthcare serves patients through facilities located across the United States, as well as through HCA Healthcare UK, its healthcare operations in the United Kingdom.

HCA Healthcare was founded in 1968 by Dr.

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