HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) Stock Position Boosted by Verdence Capital Advisors LLC

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA - Free Report) by 4.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,569 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 920 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $6,762,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Atwood & Palmer Inc. acquired a new position in HCA Healthcare during the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in HCA Healthcare by 888.9% during the first quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 89 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC lifted its position in HCA Healthcare by 344.0% during the first quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 111 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC lifted its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 99.0% during the fourth quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC now owns 191 shares of the company's stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the fourth quarter worth $64,000. 62.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HCA has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Baird R W cut shares of HCA Healthcare from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $390.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley set a $410.00 price target on shares of HCA Healthcare and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Stephens upgraded shares of HCA Healthcare to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. Finally, Guggenheim assumed coverage on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. They issued a "neutral" rating for the company. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $399.21.

HCA Healthcare Stock Performance

HCA stock traded down $1.69 during trading on Friday, hitting $360.91. 1,029,847 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,452,577. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $376.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $343.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $86.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.07. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 52 week low of $289.98 and a 52 week high of $417.14.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $6.45 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.75 by $0.70. The business had revenue of $18.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.26 billion. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.07% and a return on equity of 1,063.91%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.36 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th were given a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.80%. HCA Healthcare's dividend payout ratio is currently 12.81%.

Insider Activity at HCA Healthcare

In related news, COO Jon M. Foster sold 15,698 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $369.32, for a total value of $5,797,585.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 12,646 shares in the company, valued at $4,670,420.72. This represents a 55.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

HCA Healthcare Profile

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.