HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) Shares Acquired by SouthState Corp

Key Points

• SouthState Corp increased its holdings in HCA Healthcare, Inc. by 80.5% during the first quarter, owning 6,818 shares worth approximately $2.36 million at the end of the quarter.
• HCA Healthcare reported $6.84 EPS for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations of $6.20, alongside a revenue of $18.61 billion, reflecting a 6.4% year-over-year increase.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.72 per share, with a dividend yield of 0.8% and a payout ratio of 12.11%.

SouthState Corp grew its position in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA - Free Report) by 80.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,818 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,040 shares during the period. SouthState Corp's holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $2,356,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brown Advisory Inc. grew its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 53.9% during the first quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 4,630 shares of the company's stock worth $1,600,000 after acquiring an additional 1,622 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 26.9% in the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,141 shares of the company's stock valued at $395,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. grew 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 buying an additional 105 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 17.6% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,931 shares of the company's stock worth $1,704,000 after acquiring an additional 737 shares during the period. Finally, J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 145.3% during the first quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 3,550 shares of the company's stock worth $1,227,000 after purchasing an additional 2,103 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.73% of the company's stock.

HCA Healthcare Trading Up 2.3%

Shares of HCA stock opened at $381.84 on Monday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $369.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $349.53. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $289.98 and a fifty-two week high of $417.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.07. The stock has a market cap of $89.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.39.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 25th. The company reported $6.84 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.20 by $0.64. The company had revenue of $18.61 billion for 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 quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $5.50 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 EPS for the current year.

HCA Healthcare Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 0.8%. HCA Healthcare's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on HCA. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on 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. Robert W. Baird restated a "neutral" rating and set a $336.00 price objective (down from $396.00) on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Wall Street Zen raised HCA Healthcare from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 5th. Stephens raised shares of HCA Healthcare to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. Finally, Baird R W lowered shares of HCA Healthcare from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, HCA Healthcare has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $395.69.

Insider Buying and Selling at HCA Healthcare

In other HCA Healthcare news, COO Jon M. Foster sold 15,698 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $369.32, for a total transaction of $5,797,585.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 12,646 shares in the company, valued at $4,670,420.72. This trade represents a 55.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.

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