Pacer Advisors Inc. Acquires 1,329,618 Shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA)

Key Points

• Pacer Advisors Inc. significantly increased its stake in HCA Healthcare by 6,237.9%, acquiring an additional 1,329,618 shares during the first quarter, bringing its total to approximately 1,350,933 shares.
• Multiple hedge funds adjusted their positions in HCA Healthcare, with ANTIPODES PARTNERS lifting its holdings by 1,415.0% during the same period, indicating strong institutional interest in the stock.
• HCA Healthcare reported a quarterly EPS of $6.45, exceeding expectations, with revenue reaching $18.32 billion, up 5.7% compared to the previous year.

Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA - Free Report) by 6,237.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,350,933 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,329,618 shares during the period. HCA Healthcare comprises about 1.1% of Pacer Advisors Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position. Pacer Advisors Inc. owned about 0.55% of HCA Healthcare worth $466,815,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in HCA. Neo Ivy Capital Management grew its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 21.0% during the 1st quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management now owns 1,456 shares of the company's stock valued at $503,000 after buying an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its stake in HCA Healthcare by 10.3% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 32,168 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,116,000 after buying an additional 2,997 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 8,077 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,791,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Brookwood Investment Group LLC purchased a new stake in HCA Healthcare in the first quarter valued at approximately $761,000. Finally, ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 1,415.0% during the 1st quarter. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd now owns 435,423 shares of the company's stock worth $150,472,000 after acquiring an additional 406,682 shares during the last quarter. 62.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on HCA. Robert W. Baird reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $336.00 price objective (down previously from $396.00) on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Stephens upgraded HCA Healthcare to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Guggenheim initiated coverage on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. They set a "neutral" rating for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $404.00 price target (up previously from $376.00) on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of HCA Healthcare from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 5th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $399.46.

HCA Healthcare Price Performance

Shares of HCA Healthcare stock opened at $340.75 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.07, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.19. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a one year low of $289.98 and a one year high of $417.14. The stock has a market cap of $81.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.47. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $374.87 and a 200-day moving average price of $345.50.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA - Get Free Report) last posted 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. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.07% and a return on equity of 1,063.91%. The company had revenue of $18.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.26 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.36 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other HCA Healthcare news, COO Jon M. Foster sold 15,698 shares of the firm's 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 transaction, the chief operating officer owned 12,646 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,670,420.72. This trade represents a 55.38% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.

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