AXS Investments LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA)

AXS Investments LLC cut its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 12.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 627 shares of the company’s stock after selling 88 shares during the quarter. AXS Investments LLC’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $170,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HCA. Stone House Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Centerpoint Advisors LLC bought a new position in HCA Healthcare during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new position in HCA Healthcare in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare during the third quarter worth $30,000. Institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at HCA Healthcare

In other HCA Healthcare news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 1,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.00, for a total value of $494,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 34,124 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,544,316. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 1,600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.00, for a total value of $494,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 34,124 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,544,316. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Kathryn A. Torres sold 1,863 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.18, for a total value of $607,673.34. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 19,612 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,397,042.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 13,617 shares of company stock worth $4,321,986 over the last quarter. 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HCA has been the subject of several analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded HCA Healthcare from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 18th. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $320.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $322.00 to $329.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Barclays lifted their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $356.00 to $367.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $335.00 price target on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $317.00.

HCA Healthcare Trading Up 1.1 %

HCA stock traded up $3.38 during trading on Friday, hitting $318.70. 814,302 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 994,269. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 29.26, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.16. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 1 year low of $215.96 and a 1 year high of $335.83. The company has a 50-day moving average of $318.89 and a 200-day moving average of $305.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $83.47 billion, a PE ratio of 15.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.66.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $5.36 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.01 by $0.35. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.20% and a return on equity of 674.49%. The company had revenue of $17.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.81 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $4.93 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 11.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 20.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, January 30th that allows the company to repurchase $6.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

HCA Healthcare Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.83%. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.16%.

About HCA Healthcare

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.