First Trust Advisors LP Sells 5,760 Shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. $HCA

Key Points

• First Trust Advisors LP reduced its HCA Healthcare position by 5.9%, selling 5,760 shares and retaining 92,334 shares worth approximately $43.7 million. Institutional investors collectively own 62.73% of HCA’s outstanding stock.
• HCA exceeded quarterly expectations: earnings were $7.59 per share versus the $7.56 consensus, while revenue increased 8.7% year over year to $20.23 billion. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus, although several firms recently lowered their price targets.
• HCA declared a quarterly dividend of $0.78 per share, payable September 30 to shareholders of record September 16. The dividend equates to $3.12 annually and a yield of approximately 0.8%.

First Trust Advisors LP cut its position in shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA - Free Report) by 5.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 92,334 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,760 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP's holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $43,696,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp lifted its position in HCA Healthcare by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,566,643 shares of the company's stock worth $3,532,563,000 after purchasing an additional 76,039 shares during the period. Capital World Investors lifted its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 4,999,422 shares of the company's stock worth $2,334,040,000 after acquiring an additional 40,086 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in HCA Healthcare by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,663,705 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,702,738,000 after acquiring an additional 13,565 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in HCA Healthcare during the fourth quarter worth about $1,262,513,000. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 11.9% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,311,112 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,078,966,000 after purchasing an additional 245,887 shares during the period. 62.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on HCA shares. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price target on HCA Healthcare from $588.00 to $525.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $476.00 price objective on HCA Healthcare in a report on Monday. TD Cowen dropped their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $500.00 to $431.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of HCA Healthcare from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $635.00 to $579.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $473.36.

HCA Healthcare Stock Up 2.0%

HCA Healthcare stock opened at $389.74 on Tuesday. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 12-month low of $331.61 and a 12-month high of $556.52. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $386.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $452.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $86.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.12.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The company reported $7.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $7.56 by $0.03. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.77% and a negative return on equity of 244.79%. The company had revenue of $20.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.76 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $6.84 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 29.19 EPS for the current year.

HCA Healthcare Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 16th will be paid a $0.78 dividend. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 16th. HCA Healthcare's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 10.45%.

Key Headlines Impacting HCA Healthcare

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 results exceeded expectations. HCA reported adjusted earnings of $7.59 per share versus the $7.56 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 8.7% year over year to $20.23 billion, topping forecasts of $19.76 billion. The earnings beat and continued revenue growth are supporting investor sentiment. HCA Healthcare’s Q2 CY2026 sales top estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain broadly constructive despite lower targets. Truist, Oppenheimer and KeyCorp cut their price targets but retained buy, outperform or overweight ratings. RBC also reaffirmed its outperform rating with a $435 target, indicating that analysts still see upside from current levels. HCA Healthcare Analysts Slash Their Forecasts After Q2 Results
• Neutral Sentiment: HCA declared a quarterly dividend of $0.78 per share. The dividend is payable September 30 to shareholders of record September 16 and carries an indicated yield of approximately 0.8%, providing modest shareholder income.
• Neutral Sentiment: Leadership change at two Tampa hospitals. HCA promoted a new chief executive officer for the facilities, a routine management update with limited immediate financial impact. HCA promotes new CEO of 2 Tampa hospitals
• Negative Sentiment: Uninsured Affordable Care Act patients are a concern. Nearly all of HCA’s ACA exchange patients reportedly lacked insurance coverage during the quarter, highlighting reimbursement and bad-debt risks that could weigh on margins and future earnings.
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple analysts reduced their forecasts after the earnings release. Barclays moved to equal weight with a $387 target, while Baird maintained a neutral rating and lowered its target to $393. The widespread target reductions suggest expectations for HCA’s future growth and profitability have moderated.
• Negative Sentiment: Mission Health compliance concerns remain unresolved. Reports of a third consecutive year of compliance issues add legal, regulatory and reputational risk for HCA. HCA Healthcare faces third straight year of Mission Health compliance concerns

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.

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