The Goldman Sachs Group Initiates Coverage on HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA)

Key Points

• The Goldman Sachs Group has initiated coverage on HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) with a "buy" rating and a price target of $470.00, indicating a potential upside of 12.35% from the current price.
• Recent earnings data shows HCA Healthcare reported $6.84 EPS, exceeding analyst expectations and demonstrating 6.4% year-over-year revenue growth.
• The stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from analysts, with two strong buy ratings, nine buy ratings, and nine hold ratings.

Research analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA - Get Free Report) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm set a "buy" rating and a $470.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group's price objective indicates a potential upside of 12.35% from the stock's current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on HCA. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $375.00 to $412.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Truist Financial set a $460.00 price target on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Tuesday. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $404.00 to $401.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $444.00 target price on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $431.07.

HCA Healthcare Trading Up 1.9%

Shares of NYSE HCA opened at $418.34 on Tuesday. HCA Healthcare has a 12-month low of $289.98 and a 12-month high of $439.01. The stock has a market cap of $97.89 billion, a PE ratio of 17.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a 50-day moving average of $407.16 and a 200 day moving average of $376.85.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 25th. The company reported $6.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.20 by $0.64. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.21% and a negative return on equity of 7,363.11%. The firm had revenue of $18.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.49 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $5.50 earnings per share. HCA Healthcare's revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. HCA Healthcare has set its FY 2025 guidance at 25.500-27.000 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that HCA Healthcare will post 24.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at HCA Healthcare

In related news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 3,836 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 31,503 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,194,716.52. This trade represents a 10.85% decrease in their position. 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 company insiders.

Institutional Trading of HCA Healthcare

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. True North Advisors LLC raised its position in HCA Healthcare by 16.3% in the 3rd quarter. True North Advisors LLC now owns 1,250 shares of the company's stock valued at $533,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in HCA Healthcare by 57.0% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,196 shares of the company's stock worth $936,000 after buying an additional 797 shares during the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC purchased a new position in HCA Healthcare during the 3rd quarter worth $540,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its position in HCA Healthcare by 54.8% during the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 38,266 shares of the company's stock worth $16,309,000 after buying an additional 13,547 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in HCA Healthcare by 8.2% during the 3rd quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,934 shares of the company's stock worth $1,677,000 after buying an additional 298 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.73% of the company's stock.

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.