HCA Healthcare, Inc. $HCA Stock Holdings Lifted by MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd.

Key Points

• MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in HCA Healthcare by 11.9%, acquiring a total of 25,454 shares valued at approximately $8.8 million.
• HCA Healthcare has received a range of ratings from analysts, including upgrades to "buy" from Wall Street Zen and price targets rising to as high as $423, reflecting a positive outlook on the stock.
• The company reported significant quarterly earnings, with an EPS of $6.84, exceeding analysts' expectations, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.72 per share payable to shareholders.

MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA - Free Report) by 11.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,454 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,698 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd.'s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $8,796,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Brown Advisory Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 53.9% in the first quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 4,630 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,600,000 after acquiring an additional 1,622 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in HCA Healthcare by 26.9% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,141 shares of the company's stock worth $395,000 after acquiring an additional 242 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. raised its position in HCA Healthcare by 2.5% during the first quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,314 shares of the company's stock worth $1,491,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 17.6% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,931 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,704,000 after buying an additional 737 shares during the last quarter. Finally, J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 145.3% in the first quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 3,550 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,227,000 after buying an additional 2,103 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.73% of the company's stock.

HCA Healthcare Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of HCA stock traded up $2.69 on Friday, hitting $405.54. The stock had a trading volume of 761,184 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,129,364. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 52-week low of $289.98 and a 52-week high of $420.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.07, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $94.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.41. The stock's 50 day moving average is $382.88 and its 200-day moving average is $362.77.

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

HCA Healthcare Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 3,836 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $418.84, for a total value of $1,606,670.24. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 31,503 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,194,716.52. This trade represents a 10.85% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $375.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $404.00 to $401.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $444.00 price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of HCA Healthcare from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $410.00 to $400.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 28th. One investment 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $403.17.

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.