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

HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA - Get Free Report) has been given an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the nineteen analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, ten have given a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $395.71.

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of HCA Healthcare from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $320.00 to $385.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $404.00 price target (up previously from $376.00) on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Morgan Stanley set a $410.00 price target on shares of HCA Healthcare and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of HCA Healthcare from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Baird R W lowered shares of HCA Healthcare from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th.

HCA Healthcare Trading Up 0.4%

NYSE HCA opened at $379.00 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $91.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.49. HCA Healthcare has a 12 month low of $289.98 and a 12 month high of $417.14. The company's fifty day moving average price is $366.55 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $336.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.07, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 1.06.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $6.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 net margin of 8.07% and a return on equity of 1,063.91%. The firm's revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $5.36 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that HCA Healthcare will post 24.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare Announces Dividend

The firm 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.76%. HCA Healthcare's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.81%.

Insider Activity

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 value of $5,797,585.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly 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 filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cheviot Value Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. Atwood & Palmer Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. 62.73% of the stock is currently 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.

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