Rafferty Asset Management LLC Has $6.21 Million Stake in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA)

Rafferty Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA - Free Report) by 9.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,689 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,843 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC's holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $6,210,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of HCA. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in HCA Healthcare during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Tidemark LLC bought a new position in HCA Healthcare in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Activest Wealth Management raised its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 1,250.0% during the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 135 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC raised its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 99.0% in the 4th quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC now owns 191 shares of the company's stock valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the period. Finally, Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the fourth quarter worth $64,000. 62.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on HCA shares. Bank of America reduced their target price on HCA Healthcare from $380.00 to $370.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com raised shares of HCA Healthcare from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Guggenheim started coverage on HCA Healthcare in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. They set a "neutral" rating for the company. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $392.00 to $366.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $405.00 price target on shares of HCA Healthcare in a report on Monday, January 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $381.13.

HCA Healthcare Price Performance

Shares of HCA traded down $3.62 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $382.43. 1,118,243 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,436,125. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $289.98 and a fifty-two week high of $417.14. The firm's fifty day moving average is $343.61 and its 200 day moving average is $328.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.07. The company has a market cap of $92.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.46.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $6.45 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.75 by $0.70. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.16% and a return on equity of 586.47%. The company had revenue of $18.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.26 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $5.36 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. HCA Healthcare's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.81%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other HCA Healthcare news, COO Jon M. Foster sold 15,698 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 12,646 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,670,420.72. The trade was a 55.38% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

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.