KBC Group NV Sells 17,918 Shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA)

KBC Group NV lowered its position in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA - Free Report) by 4.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 345,174 shares of the company's stock after selling 17,918 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV owned about 0.14% of HCA Healthcare worth $119,275,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HCA. Norges Bank bought a new stake in HCA Healthcare during the 4th quarter valued at $840,286,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 40,527.3% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,703,907 shares of the company's stock worth $5,887,850,000 after purchasing an additional 1,699,713 shares in the last quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. grew its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 62.0% during the 4th quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 1,500,786 shares of the company's stock valued at $450,461,000 after buying an additional 574,239 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 85.7% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,061,891 shares of the company's stock worth $318,727,000 after buying an additional 489,916 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP grew its stake in HCA Healthcare by 12,016.0% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 467,437 shares of the company's stock valued at $140,301,000 after acquiring an additional 463,579 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.73% of the company's stock.

HCA Healthcare Trading Down 0.3%

NYSE:HCA traded down $1.22 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $378.08. 239,128 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,609,067. The stock has a market capitalization of $90.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.81, a PEG ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.49. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 12 month low of $289.98 and a 12 month high of $417.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.07, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.19. The company has a fifty day moving average of $366.55 and a 200 day moving average of $337.09.

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

HCA Healthcare Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. HCA Healthcare's payout ratio is currently 12.81%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on HCA shares. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $336.00 price target (down previously from $396.00) on shares of HCA Healthcare in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Baird R W downgraded HCA Healthcare from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Barclays set a $416.00 target price on shares of HCA Healthcare and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. Morgan Stanley set a $410.00 price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Guggenheim initiated coverage on HCA Healthcare in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. They set a "neutral" rating for the company. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $395.71.

HCA Healthcare Company 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.