HCA Healthcare, Inc. $HCA Position Lessened by Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc.

Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. lowered its stake in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 5.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 111,274 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,872 shares during the quarter. HCA Healthcare makes up 2.5% of Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $51,950,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of HCA. Capital World Investors raised its stake in HCA Healthcare by 3.8% in the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 4,959,336 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,113,662,000 after buying an additional 179,443 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,065,225 shares of the company’s stock worth $880,199,000 after acquiring an additional 36,414 shares during the period. Viking Global Investors LP lifted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 58.5% in the 2nd quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 1,872,133 shares of the company’s stock valued at $717,214,000 after purchasing an additional 690,773 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc grew its stake in HCA Healthcare by 0.8% in the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,124,511 shares of the company’s stock worth $479,267,000 after purchasing an additional 8,478 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in HCA Healthcare by 1.1% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,100,929 shares of the company’s stock valued at $469,216,000 after buying an additional 11,829 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

HCA Healthcare Trading Up 1.0%

HCA stock opened at $487.84 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $109.07 billion, a PE ratio of 17.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.36. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $510.99 and its 200 day simple moving average is $484.17. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 12-month low of $314.43 and a 12-month high of $556.52.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The company reported $8.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.37 by $0.64. HCA Healthcare had a negative return on equity of 409.11% and a net margin of 8.97%.The firm had revenue of $19.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.67 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.22 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. HCA Healthcare has set its FY 2026 guidance at 29.100-31.500 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 earnings per share for the current year.

HCA Healthcare Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th were paid a $0.78 dividend. This is a boost from HCA Healthcare’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 17th. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on HCA shares. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $598.00 to $635.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Argus raised their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $530.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on HCA Healthcare from $535.00 to $590.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $500.00 to $558.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded HCA Healthcare from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 14th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $537.36.

Insider Activity at HCA Healthcare

In related news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $498.09, for a total transaction of $747,135.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 30,003 shares in the company, valued at $14,944,194.27. This represents a 4.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael R. Mcalevey sold 1,694 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $533.37, for a total transaction of $903,528.78. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 8,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,721,924.61. This represents a 16.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 15,214 shares of company stock worth $7,797,595 in the last three months. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.