HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) Shares Sold by Gotham Asset Management LLC

Gotham Asset Management LLC lessened its holdings in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA - Free Report) by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 21,406 shares of the company's stock after selling 924 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC's holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $6,425,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Galvin Gaustad & Stein LLC purchased a new stake in HCA Healthcare in the 4th quarter worth $18,044,000. Czech National Bank increased its stake in HCA Healthcare by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 39,543 shares of the company's stock worth $11,869,000 after buying an additional 1,691 shares in the last quarter. Peak Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,122,000. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC boosted its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 116,075 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,840,000 after purchasing an additional 8,329 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 120.1% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 873,775 shares of the company's stock valued at $262,264,000 after purchasing an additional 476,756 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.73% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at HCA Healthcare

In other news, COO Jon M. Foster sold 15,698 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 12,646 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,670,420.72. The trade was a 55.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

HCA Healthcare Stock Up 0.5%

HCA stock traded up $1.99 during trading on Friday, hitting $387.49. 1,789,678 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,427,257. The firm has a market capitalization of $93.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.64, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.46. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $340.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $328.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.07. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 1 year low of $289.98 and a 1 year high of $417.14.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $6.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.75 by $0.70. The company had revenue of $18.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.26 billion. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.16% and a return on equity of 586.47%. HCA Healthcare's revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $5.36 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 EPS for the current year.

HCA Healthcare Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.74%. HCA Healthcare's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.81%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on HCA shares. Guggenheim started coverage on shares of HCA Healthcare in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. They set a "neutral" rating for the company. StockNews.com raised shares of HCA Healthcare from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $380.00 to $370.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. 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. Finally, Baird R W downgraded shares of HCA Healthcare from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. One investment 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $381.13.

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.