HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) Shares Sold by Bellevue Group AG

Bellevue Group AG decreased its holdings in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA - Free Report) by 46.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 61,883 shares of the company's stock after selling 52,642 shares during the quarter. Bellevue Group AG's holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $18,574,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Tidemark LLC purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Activest Wealth Management lifted its position in HCA Healthcare by 1,250.0% during the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 135 shares of the company's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. grew its position in HCA Healthcare by 50.0% during the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 150 shares of the company's stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the fourth quarter worth about $62,000. 62.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

HCA Healthcare Trading Up 2.2 %

Shares of HCA traded up $7.77 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $357.15. The stock had a trading volume of 1,586,947 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,401,027. The business's fifty day moving average is $333.12 and its 200 day moving average is $329.41. The firm has a market cap of $87.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.07, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.97. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 52-week low of $289.98 and a 52-week high of $417.14.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $6.45 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.75 by $0.70. HCA Healthcare had a return on equity of 586.47% and a net margin of 8.16%. The business had revenue of $18.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.26 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $5.36 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.81%. HCA Healthcare's payout ratio is presently 12.81%.

Insider Buying and Selling at HCA Healthcare

In other HCA Healthcare news, SVP Jennifer Berres sold 9,533 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $322.59, for a total transaction of $3,075,250.47. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 15,412 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,971,757.08. This trade represents a 38.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on HCA. Baird R W lowered HCA Healthcare from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on HCA Healthcare from $384.00 to $376.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $380.00 to $370.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $392.00 to $366.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $405.00 price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare in a report on Monday, January 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $381.13.

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.