Stephens Consulting LLC Sells 176 Shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA)

Stephens Consulting LLC reduced its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 14.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,084 shares of the company’s stock after selling 176 shares during the quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $362,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Apexium Financial LP bought a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $361,000. Sanders Capital LLC raised its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 11,404,003 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,086,836,000 after purchasing an additional 456,738 shares in the last quarter. Todd Asset Management LLC lifted its position in HCA Healthcare by 17.2% during the fourth quarter. Todd Asset Management LLC now owns 226,563 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,326,000 after acquiring an additional 33,271 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 60.6% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 365,984 shares of the company’s stock valued at $99,065,000 after purchasing an additional 138,146 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky raised its stake in HCA Healthcare by 15.6% in the fourth quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 199,209 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,922,000 after buying an additional 26,919 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

HCA Healthcare Stock Down 6.4 %

Shares of NYSE HCA traded down $22.01 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $321.28. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,016,852 shares, compared to its average volume of 932,511. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $325.96 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $317.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 29.26, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 1.02. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 1 year low of $215.96 and a 1 year high of $344.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $84.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.69.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 8.20% and a return on equity of 674.49%. The business had revenue of $17.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.81 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $4.93 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 11.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 20.92 EPS for the current year.

HCA Healthcare Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.82%. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio is presently 13.16%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on HCA Healthcare from $359.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $371.00 to $360.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $330.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 29th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on HCA Healthcare from $322.00 to $329.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 29th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of HCA Healthcare from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, June 16th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $326.53.

Insider Transactions at HCA Healthcare

In other news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 1,600 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 34,124 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,544,316. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 6,311 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $316.88, for a total value of $1,999,829.68. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 29,624 shares in the company, valued at $9,387,253.12. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 1,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.00, for a total value of $494,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 34,124 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,544,316. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 12,397 shares of company stock worth $3,921,929. Insiders own 1.60% 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.