Westwood Holdings Group Inc. Sells 497 Shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. $HCA

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. lessened its holdings in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 2.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,047 shares of the company’s stock after selling 497 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc.’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $6,531,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in HCA. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in HCA Healthcare during the first quarter valued at about $569,217,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 6,237.9% in the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,350,933 shares of the company’s stock worth $466,815,000 after purchasing an additional 1,329,618 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 83.4% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,399,372 shares of the company’s stock valued at $829,104,000 after buying an additional 1,091,416 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 49.1% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,781,459 shares of the company’s stock worth $615,583,000 after acquiring an additional 587,036 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Abdiel Capital Advisors LP bought a new position in HCA Healthcare during the first quarter worth about $164,835,000. 62.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

HCA Healthcare Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of HCA Healthcare stock opened at $472.40 on Friday. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 12 month low of $289.98 and a 12 month high of $480.00. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $433.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $396.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $107.80 billion, a PE ratio of 18.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.41.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last issued its earnings results on Friday, October 24th. The company reported $6.96 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.64 by $1.32. The company had revenue of $19.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.55 billion. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.53% and a negative return on equity of 792.25%. The firm’s revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.90 EPS. HCA Healthcare has set its FY 2025 guidance at 27.000-28.000 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 29th. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th will be paid a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 15th. HCA Healthcare’s payout ratio is presently 11.13%.

Insider Transactions at HCA Healthcare

In related news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 3,836 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $418.84, for a total value of $1,606,670.24. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 31,503 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,194,716.52. This trade represents a 10.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Michael R. Mcalevey sold 3,892 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $473.79, for a total transaction of $1,843,990.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 3,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,652,105.73. This trade represents a 52.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HCA has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of HCA Healthcare from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, October 25th. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on HCA Healthcare from $400.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on HCA Healthcare from $485.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Wolfe Research lowered shares of HCA Healthcare from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $460.00 to $495.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $474.53.

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.