Wealthfront Advisers LLC Purchases 8,463 Shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. $HCA

Key Points

• Wealthfront Advisers LLC increased its stake in HCA by 38.8% in Q4, purchasing 8,463 shares to hold 30,303 shares worth about $14.15 million.
• Insiders have been net sellers, disposing of 15,214 shares in the last three months (including SVPs Christopher Wyatt's 4,000 and Jennifer Berres' 8,020 sold on Feb. 11), with insiders now owning just 1.50% of the company.
• Analysts give HCA a Moderate Buy consensus with a $520.55 average target; the company slightly missed quarterly EPS, set FY2026 guidance of 29.10–31.50 EPS, and announced a $0.78 quarterly dividend (0.7% yield).

Wealthfront Advisers LLC raised its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA - Free Report) by 38.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 30,303 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 8,463 shares during the quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC's holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $14,147,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Wealthstar Advisors LLC acquired a new position in HCA Healthcare during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,009,000. Certuity LLC increased its stake in HCA Healthcare by 14.6% during the 4th quarter. Certuity LLC now owns 1,159 shares of the company's stock valued at $541,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Torren Management LLC acquired a new position in HCA Healthcare during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $120,000. Ares Financial Consulting LLC purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, M&T Bank Corp increased its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 35.9% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 11,623 shares of the company's stock worth $5,427,000 after acquiring an additional 3,073 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.73% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at HCA Healthcare

In other HCA Healthcare news, SVP Christopher F. Wyatt sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $505.00, for a total transaction of $2,020,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 44,379 shares of the company's stock, valued at $22,411,395. This trade represents a 8.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Jennifer Berres sold 8,020 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $514.58, for a total transaction of $4,126,931.60. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 11,993 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,171,357.94. The trade was a 40.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 15,214 shares of company stock valued at $7,797,595. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on HCA. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $520.00 to $558.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Leerink Partners cut their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $573.00 to $500.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $551.00 to $496.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $525.00 price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Friday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $420.00 to $535.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, HCA Healthcare currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $520.55.

HCA Healthcare Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HCA opened at $430.99 on Wednesday. The company's fifty day moving average price is $501.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $486.12. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 1 year low of $329.72 and a 1 year high of $556.52. The company has a market capitalization of $96.36 billion, a PE ratio of 14.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.36.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 24th. The company reported $7.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.19 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $19.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $19.09 billion. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.89% and a negative return on equity of 295.93%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $6.45 earnings per share. HCA Healthcare has set its FY 2026 guidance at 29.100-31.500 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 30.06 EPS for the current year.

HCA Healthcare Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 16th. HCA Healthcare's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.73%.

About HCA Healthcare

HCA Healthcare is a for‑profit operator of healthcare facilities headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1968, the company owns and operates a network of hospitals and related healthcare facilities and has grown through organic expansion and acquisitions to become a large provider of inpatient and outpatient services.

The company's core activities include the operation of acute care hospitals, freestanding surgical and emergency centers, and outpatient clinics. HCA's services encompass inpatient care, surgical services, emergency medicine, diagnostic imaging and laboratory testing, and various outpatient and ambulatory care offerings.

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