HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) Reaches New 1-Year High – Here’s Why

HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $479.43 and last traded at $474.08, with a volume of 1411770 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $462.31.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on HCA. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of HCA Healthcare in a report on Monday, October 27th. Morgan Stanley set a $425.00 price target on HCA Healthcare in a report on Monday, October 27th. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $400.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Wolfe Research lowered HCA Healthcare from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $380.00 to $423.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $473.53.

HCA Healthcare Trading Up 2.5%

The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $431.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $394.54. The stock has a market cap of $108.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.33, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.41.

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

HCA Healthcare Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at HCA Healthcare

In related news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 3,836 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $418.84, for a total value of $1,606,670.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 31,503 shares in the company, valued at $13,194,716.52. The trade was a 10.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael R. Mcalevey sold 3,892 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction on 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 directly owned 3,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,652,105.73. The trade was a 52.74% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On HCA Healthcare

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of HCA. Sovran Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 1.0% in the third quarter. Sovran Advisors LLC now owns 2,278 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,063,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the period. Centerpoint Advisors LLC grew its position in HCA Healthcare by 11.0% in the 3rd quarter. Centerpoint Advisors LLC now owns 222 shares of the company’s stock worth $95,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC now owns 590 shares of the company’s stock valued at $251,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the period. Hemington Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 11.0% in the 3rd quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 253 shares of the company’s stock worth $107,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hurley Capital LLC lifted its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 0.5% in the third quarter. Hurley Capital LLC now owns 4,576 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,950,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

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.