Exchange Traded Concepts LLC Raises Stock Holdings in HCA Healthcare, Inc. $HCA

Key Points

• Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its stake in HCA Healthcare by 70.2%, owning a total of 24,719 shares valued at approximately $9.47 million as of the end of the second quarter.
• Several institutional investors have raised their positions in HCA Healthcare, with 62.73% of the stock now owned by such investors.
• HCA Healthcare has a current average price target of $407.75 with ratings including one "Strong Buy," seven "Buy," and nine "Hold" from analysts.

Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its stake in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA - Free Report) by 70.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 24,719 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 10,193 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC's holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $9,470,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of HCA. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 40,527.3% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,703,907 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,887,850,000 after buying an additional 1,699,713 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in HCA Healthcare in the 1st quarter valued at about $569,217,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 6,237.9% in the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,350,933 shares of the company's stock valued at $466,815,000 after buying an additional 1,329,618 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in HCA Healthcare by 83.4% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,399,372 shares of the company's stock valued at $829,104,000 after acquiring an additional 1,091,416 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in HCA Healthcare by 49.1% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,781,459 shares of the company's stock valued at $615,583,000 after acquiring an additional 587,036 shares in the last quarter. 62.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

HCA Healthcare Stock Up 1.4%

HCA stock traded up $5.51 during trading on Monday, hitting $407.81. 1,010,595 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,238,651. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $385.76 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $366.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $95.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.14, a PEG ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.41. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 52-week low of $289.98 and a 52-week high of $420.98. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.07.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 25th. The company reported $6.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.20 by $0.64. The firm had revenue of $18.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.49 billion. HCA Healthcare had a negative return on equity of 7,363.11% and a net margin of 8.21%.The firm's revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $5.50 earnings per share. HCA Healthcare has set its FY 2025 guidance at 25.500-27.000 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 EPS for the current year.

HCA Healthcare Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 16th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. HCA Healthcare's payout ratio is presently 12.11%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other HCA Healthcare news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 3,836 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $418.84, for a total value of $1,606,670.24. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 31,503 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,194,716.52. The trade was a 10.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays lifted their target price on HCA Healthcare from $390.00 to $445.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on HCA Healthcare from $380.00 to $423.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on HCA Healthcare from $360.00 to $370.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $390.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $444.00 price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Tuesday, August 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $407.75.

About HCA Healthcare

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.