Per Stirling Capital Management LLC. Reduces Stake in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA)

Per Stirling Capital Management LLC. lowered its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 27.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,534 shares of the company’s stock after selling 969 shares during the quarter. Per Stirling Capital Management LLC.’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $769,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Covestor Ltd raised its position in HCA Healthcare by 122.7% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 167 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the fourth quarter worth about $48,000. BDO Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in HCA Healthcare by 60.0% during the 2nd quarter. BDO Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 160 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Cutler Group LLC CA grew its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 566.7% in the 1st quarter. Cutler Group LLC CA now owns 200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Finally, WASHINGTON TRUST Co lifted its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 100.0% during the second quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co now owns 180 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. 62.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of HCA Healthcare from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 1st. TheStreet downgraded HCA Healthcare from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 25th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $280.00 target price on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Friday, November 10th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $324.00 to $279.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $313.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, HCA Healthcare presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $296.59.

HCA Healthcare Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:HCA traded up $1.64 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $250.05. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 363,279 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,310,859. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 103.06. The firm has a market cap of $66.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.66. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 1 year low of $215.96 and a 1 year high of $304.86. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $241.84 and a 200 day moving average price of $266.21.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 24th. The company reported $3.91 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.97 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $16.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.77 billion. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 9.05% and a return on equity of 2,040.32%. Research analysts forecast that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 18.18 EPS for the current year.

HCA Healthcare Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 14th will be given a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.96%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 13th. HCA Healthcare’s payout ratio is currently 11.81%.

HCA Healthcare Company Profile

HCA Healthcare, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides health care services 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.