Empowered Funds LLC Acquires Shares of 24,176 HCA Healthcare, Inc. $HCA

Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new position in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 24,176 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,426,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of HCA. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the second quarter valued at approximately $5,069,974,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in HCA Healthcare during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,262,513,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in HCA Healthcare in the second quarter worth $410,992,000. Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 2nd quarter worth about $371,138,000. Finally, Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd purchased a new stake in HCA Healthcare during the 4th quarter valued at about $374,037,000. 62.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on HCA. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $558.00 to $485.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $435.00 price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare in a report on Monday, July 27th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of HCA Healthcare from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $369.00 to $381.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $476.00 price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $462.64.

HCA Healthcare Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:HCA opened at $417.57 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $401.08 and its 200 day moving average is $441.46. The stock has a market cap of $90.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.10. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 52-week low of $353.99 and a 52-week high of $556.52.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 24th. The company reported $7.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.56 by $0.03. HCA Healthcare had a negative return on equity of 244.79% and a net margin of 8.77%.The firm had revenue of $20.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.76 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $6.84 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 29.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 16th. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio is 10.45%.

HCA Healthcare Company Profile

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.