Analysts Set HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) Target Price at $359.89

Shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-one ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $359.89.

A number of research firms have weighed in on HCA. Leerink Partners raised their price target on HCA Healthcare from $367.00 to $396.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on HCA Healthcare from $345.00 to $390.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of HCA Healthcare from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 1st. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $378.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $392.00 target price on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Tuesday.

Insider Activity at HCA Healthcare

In other HCA Healthcare news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 8,358 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $385.42, for a total transaction of $3,221,340.36. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 29,678 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,438,494.76. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other HCA Healthcare news, SVP Christopher F. Wyatt sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.20, for a total transaction of $1,440,800.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 40,449 shares in the company, valued at $14,569,729.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 8,358 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $385.42, for a total value of $3,221,340.36. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 29,678 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,438,494.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 17,202 shares of company stock worth $6,407,273 over the last three months. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of HCA Healthcare

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of HCA. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in HCA Healthcare during the second quarter worth $27,000. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC acquired a new position in HCA Healthcare in the second quarter valued at $28,000. Bangor Savings Bank boosted its stake in HCA Healthcare by 112.5% in the 2nd quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 85 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 284.0% during the 2nd quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC now owns 96 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the period. Finally, LifeSteps Financial Inc. acquired a new position in HCA Healthcare during the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. 62.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

HCA Healthcare Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE:HCA opened at $405.45 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $381.85 and a 200 day moving average price of $344.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 27.11. HCA Healthcare has a 12-month low of $215.96 and a 12-month high of $409.42. The firm has a market cap of $106.19 billion, a PE ratio of 20.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.67.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $5.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.53. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.40% and a return on equity of 553.13%. The firm had revenue of $17.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.29 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that HCA Healthcare will post 22.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th were given a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. HCA Healthcare’s payout ratio is 13.16%.

HCA Healthcare Company Profile

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.