HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA - Get Free Report) have received a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the nineteen analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eleven have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $388.80.

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on HCA shares. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $336.00 price target (down from $396.00) on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Guggenheim initiated coverage on HCA Healthcare in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. They set a "neutral" rating for the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded HCA Healthcare from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $384.00 to $376.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of HCA Healthcare from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $320.00 to $385.00 in a report on Thursday, May 29th.

HCA Healthcare Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:HCA traded down $0.31 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $381.35. The stock had a trading volume of 1,058,710 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,631,071. The company's 50 day moving average is $353.80 and its 200-day moving average is $331.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.07, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.08. HCA Healthcare has a 12-month low of $289.98 and a 12-month high of $417.14. The company has a market cap of $91.74 billion, a PE ratio of 17.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.46.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $6.45 earnings per share 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 analysts' expectations of $18.26 billion. HCA Healthcare had a return on equity of 586.47% and a net margin of 8.16%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $5.36 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that HCA Healthcare will post 24.98 EPS for the current year.

HCA Healthcare Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. HCA Healthcare's dividend payout ratio is currently 12.81%.

Insider Activity at HCA Healthcare

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 completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 12,646 shares in the company, valued at $4,670,420.72. This trade represents a 55.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Cheviot Value Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare during the first quarter worth $26,000. Saudi Central Bank acquired a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. WPG Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Atwood & Palmer Inc. bought a new position in HCA Healthcare in the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 888.9% during the first quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 89 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. 62.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.