HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) Shares Sold by ING Groep NV

ING Groep NV lowered its holdings in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 4.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 46,944 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,257 shares during the period. ING Groep NV’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $14,090,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in HCA. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 322.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,141,769 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,276,909,000 after acquiring an additional 2,397,883 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 120.1% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 873,775 shares of the company’s stock valued at $262,264,000 after purchasing an additional 476,756 shares during the period. Meritage Group LP purchased a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare in the third quarter valued at $150,548,000. Canoe Financial LP boosted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 226,952.9% in the fourth quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 231,594 shares of the company’s stock valued at $69,513,000 after purchasing an additional 231,492 shares during the period. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 210.6% in the third quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 306,796 shares of the company’s stock valued at $124,691,000 after purchasing an additional 208,015 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

HCA Healthcare Stock Up 0.3 %

HCA Healthcare stock opened at $321.46 on Friday. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 52 week low of $289.98 and a 52 week high of $417.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.07. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $313.49 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $351.08. The stock has a market cap of $79.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.63, a PEG ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.64.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The company reported $6.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.03 by $0.19. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.16% and a return on equity of 586.47%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $5.90 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a $0.72 dividend. This is an increase from HCA Healthcare’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.02%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on HCA shares. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $405.00 to $384.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $405.00 price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $390.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $380.00 price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of HCA Healthcare from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $400.00 to $320.00 in a research report on Monday, November 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, HCA Healthcare has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $385.67.

Insider Transactions at HCA Healthcare

In related news, SVP Jennifer Berres sold 9,533 shares of the business’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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 15,412 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,971,757.08. The trade was a 38.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.