Rathbones Group PLC Sells 3,847 Shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. $HCA

Rathbones Group PLC lessened its holdings in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 7.8% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 45,303 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,847 shares during the quarter. Rathbones Group PLC’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $19,308,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Clearstead Trust LLC boosted its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 311.8% during the 2nd quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 70 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 82.9% during the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 75 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare in the second quarter worth $40,000. Compound Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in HCA Healthcare in the 3rd quarter worth $44,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC raised its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 179.5% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 109 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Jennifer Berres sold 8,020 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $514.58, for a total value of $4,126,931.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 11,993 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,171,357.94. The trade was a 40.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $498.09, for a total transaction of $747,135.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 30,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,944,194.27. This represents a 4.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 15,214 shares of company stock valued at $7,797,595 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Key HCA Healthcare News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment and research upgrades: several outlets and analysts continue to rate HCA favorably — one consensus snapshot called the stock a “Moderate Buy,” reflecting continued analyst confidence that HCA can grow earnings and return capital to shareholders. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Long-term demographic bull case: MarketBeat argues HCA is a likely beneficiary of U.S. aging demographics, noting management’s strong guidance (FY2026 EPS and EBITDA ranges), expanded capex, a $10B repurchase authorization and a raised dividend — all supportive of long‑term growth and shareholder returns. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst estimate tweaks from Zacks: Zacks Research nudged near‑term EPS estimates slightly higher for Q2, Q3 and Q4 2026 and raised FY2026 to $29.63, which supports the earnings outlook, but it kept a “Hold” rating — a modest positive but not a strong endorsement. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks’ view is mixed farther out: while FY2026 estimates were lifted, Zacks trimmed its FY2028 EPS forecast modestly — a sign analysts see near‑term strength but some uncertainty on longer‑term margin expansion. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Local/industry headlines are mixed and mostly non‑company specific: a local hospital (Manchester’s Catholic Medical Center) plans to end outpatient mental‑health services and a leadership hire at Methodist Healthcare were reported — signals about regional capacity and staffing but with limited direct impact on HCA’s large national footprint. Article Title Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Near‑term policy and revenue risks remain prominent: recent company commentary and market writeups note revenue growth was slightly below expectations in the prior quarter and management flagged $600–$900M of potential EBITDA headwinds from insurance‑exchange changes plus state supplemental payment declines — factors that could cap near‑term upside despite strong EPS. Article Title

HCA Healthcare Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of HCA stock opened at $533.63 on Monday. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 12 month low of $310.18 and a 12 month high of $552.90. The stock has a market cap of $119.33 billion, a PE ratio of 18.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.34. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $500.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $465.79.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The company reported $8.01 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $19.67 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $6.22 earnings per share. HCA Healthcare’s quarterly 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, sell-side analysts forecast that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be issued a $0.78 dividend. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. This is a positive change from HCA Healthcare’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio is presently 10.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on HCA shares. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $541.00 price target on HCA Healthcare in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Mizuho upped their target price on HCA Healthcare from $540.00 to $585.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $494.00 to $551.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $500.00 to $558.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $534.50.

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.