HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) Shares Gap Down to $314.12

HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA - Get Free Report) gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $314.12, but opened at $297.38. HCA Healthcare shares last traded at $302.35, with a volume of 320,058 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on HCA. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $330.00 to $359.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $308.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered shares of HCA Healthcare from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $277.00 to $301.00 in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $315.00 target price on shares of HCA Healthcare in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $335.00 target price on shares of HCA Healthcare in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, HCA Healthcare currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $310.88.

HCA Healthcare Stock Down 2.4 %

The stock's 50-day moving average price is $323.94 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $295.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $81.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 35.07.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $5.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.01 by $0.35. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.07% and a return on equity of 996.30%. The firm had revenue of $17.34 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.81 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $4.93 EPS. The company's revenue was up 11.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 20.58 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 Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th will be paid a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.86%. HCA Healthcare's dividend payout ratio is 13.91%.

HCA Healthcare declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 30th that allows the company to repurchase $6.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at HCA Healthcare

In other HCA Healthcare news, SVP Kathryn A. Torres sold 3,861 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.00, for a total value of $1,185,327.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 15,899 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,880,993. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other HCA Healthcare news, SVP Kathryn A. Torres sold 3,861 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.00, for a total value of $1,185,327.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 15,899 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,880,993. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Sammie S. Mosier sold 1,645 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction on Monday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $312.00, for a total transaction of $513,240.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,646 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,385,552. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 14,840 shares of company stock worth $4,588,869. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On HCA Healthcare

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Narwhal Capital Management lifted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 11.9% in the first quarter. Narwhal Capital Management now owns 34,421 shares of the company's stock worth $11,481,000 after buying an additional 3,663 shares in the last quarter. LifeSteps Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the first quarter worth $33,000. Northwest Bancshares Inc. grew its stake in HCA Healthcare by 17.7% during the first quarter. Northwest Bancshares Inc. now owns 1,499 shares of the company's stock valued at $500,000 after acquiring an additional 225 shares in the last quarter. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new position in HCA Healthcare during the first quarter valued at $349,000. Finally, KG&L Capital Management LLC lifted its position in HCA Healthcare by 40.6% during the first quarter. KG&L Capital Management LLC now owns 1,601 shares of the company's stock valued at $534,000 after purchasing an additional 462 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.