New York State Common Retirement Fund Cuts Stock Holdings in HCA Healthcare, Inc. $HCA

New York State Common Retirement Fund lessened its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 305,848 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,554 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned 0.13% of HCA Healthcare worth $130,352,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in HCA. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 13.1% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 43,920 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,719,000 after buying an additional 5,092 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank boosted its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 558,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $214,115,000 after acquiring an additional 23,100 shares during the period. Cherokee Insurance Co purchased a new stake in HCA Healthcare in the second quarter worth $3,869,000. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al boosted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 4.2% during the third quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al now owns 297,300 shares of the company’s stock valued at $126,709,000 after purchasing an additional 11,900 shares during the period. Finally, Sector Gamma AS increased its stake in HCA Healthcare by 36.0% in the 3rd quarter. Sector Gamma AS now owns 10,883 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,638,000 after buying an additional 2,883 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

More HCA Healthcare News

Here are the key news stories impacting HCA Healthcare this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 earnings beat — HCA reported EPS of $8.01 vs. street estimates (~$7.36–7.46), driven by stronger patient volumes and higher revenue per admission; the print and commentary drove initial upside. Earnings & Guidance Release
• Positive Sentiment: Large buyback announced — HCA added $10 billion to its share repurchase program, signaling strong free cash flow and a meaningful capital-return commitment that supports the stock price. Buyback Report
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend increase — HCA raised its quarterly dividend by 8.3% to $0.78, reinforcing shareholder returns alongside the buyback. Dividend & Buyback Article
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple analyst price-target upgrades — Jefferies, RBC, Deutsche Bank and Truist raised targets (to $590, $555, $558 and $546 respectively) and maintained buy/outperform views, adding upward pressure on the share price. Analyst Upgrades (example)
• Neutral Sentiment: 2026 guidance mixed — HCA set FY2026 EPS guidance of $29.10–$31.50 (around consensus) and revenue guidance of $76.5B–$80.0B (slightly wide and modestly below some estimates), leaving some uncertainty about growth cadence despite the bullish tone. Guidance Release
• Negative Sentiment: Policy headwinds could hit results — HCA flagged exposure to ACA exchange and Medicaid changes that management estimates could reduce revenue by roughly $600M–$1B in 2026, a material offset to benefits from buybacks and margin initiatives. Policy Headwinds
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation/margin risk noted by some analysts — After a strong run, some commentators warn margins may be peaking and that the stock’s valuation now factors in much of the buyback/margin upside, leaving downside if policy or margin compression materializes. Valuation/Risk Analysis

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on HCA. Raymond James Financial set a $525.00 target price on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Zacks Research cut HCA Healthcare from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 27th. KeyCorp set a $503.00 target price on HCA Healthcare in a report on Wednesday. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $520.00 to $546.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $525.00 to $588.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, HCA Healthcare presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $512.43.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other HCA Healthcare news, EVP Michael R. Mcalevey sold 3,892 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $473.79, for a total value of $1,843,990.68. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 3,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,652,105.73. This trade represents a 52.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

HCA Healthcare Price Performance

HCA opened at $491.40 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $112.13 billion, a PE ratio of 18.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.36. The business’s 50-day moving average is $481.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $436.28. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 1 year low of $295.00 and a 1 year high of $527.55.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The company reported $8.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.37 by $0.64. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.97% and a negative return on equity of 409.11%. The business had revenue of $19.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.67 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $6.22 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. HCA Healthcare has set its FY 2026 guidance at 29.100-31.500 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 EPS for the current year.

HCA Healthcare Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.78 per share. This is a positive change from HCA Healthcare’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.13%.

About HCA Healthcare

HCA Healthcare is a for‑profit operator of healthcare facilities headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1968, the company owns and operates a network of hospitals and related healthcare facilities and has grown through organic expansion and acquisitions to become a large provider of inpatient and outpatient services.

The company’s core activities include the operation of acute care hospitals, freestanding surgical and emergency centers, and outpatient clinics. HCA’s services encompass inpatient care, surgical services, emergency medicine, diagnostic imaging and laboratory testing, and various outpatient and ambulatory care offerings.