Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Sells 24,803 Shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. $HCA

Key Points

• Wedge Capital Management reduced its stake in HCA Healthcare by 19.0% during the second quarter, leaving them with 105,784 shares valued at approximately $40.5 million.
• HCA reported a better-than-expected earnings per share of $6.84 for the last quarter, surpassing consensus estimates, with revenue also exceeding forecasts at $18.61 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.72 per share, with a payout ratio of 12.11%, reflecting a current yield of 0.7%.

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lessened its stake in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA - Free Report) by 19.0% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 105,784 shares of the company's stock after selling 24,803 shares during the quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC's holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $40,526,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 8,077 shares of the company's stock worth $2,791,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the period. Glenview Trust co raised its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Glenview Trust co now owns 1,451 shares of the company's stock valued at $501,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the period. Horizon Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 1.1% during the first quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 3,175 shares of the company's stock worth $1,097,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 5.5% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 630 shares of the company's stock worth $241,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Catalyst Financial Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 4.3% during the first quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 872 shares of the company's stock worth $301,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.73% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at HCA Healthcare

In related news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 3,836 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $418.84, for a total value of $1,606,670.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 31,503 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,194,716.52. This represents a 10.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HCA has been the topic of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on HCA Healthcare from $410.00 to $400.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of HCA Healthcare from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 5th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $390.00 to $445.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, September 18th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $380.00 to $423.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, Stephens upgraded shares of HCA Healthcare to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, HCA Healthcare currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $407.75.

HCA Healthcare Trading Up 0.4%

NYSE HCA traded up $1.59 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $408.83. 466,314 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,531,250. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $385.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of $366.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.07, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.86. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 12-month low of $289.98 and a 12-month high of $420.98. The firm has a market cap of $95.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.18, a PEG ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.41.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 25th. The company reported $6.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.20 by $0.64. The business had revenue of $18.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.49 billion. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.21% and a negative return on equity of 7,363.11%. The company's revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $5.50 earnings per share. HCA Healthcare has set its FY 2025 guidance at 25.500-27.000 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 EPS for the current year.

HCA Healthcare Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 16th. HCA Healthcare's dividend payout ratio is currently 12.11%.

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.