Retirement Systems of Alabama Sells 2,227 Shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. $HCA

Retirement Systems of Alabama lessened its position in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 1.2% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 176,935 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,227 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $75,410,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Park Place Capital Corp lifted its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 2,336.0% during the 2nd quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 1,218 shares of the company’s stock worth $474,000 after buying an additional 1,168 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 13.1% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 43,920 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,719,000 after acquiring an additional 5,092 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank increased its position in HCA Healthcare by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 558,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $214,115,000 after purchasing an additional 23,100 shares during the period. Cherokee Insurance Co bought a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 2nd quarter valued at $3,869,000. Finally, VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al raised its stake in HCA Healthcare by 4.2% during the third quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al now owns 297,300 shares of the company’s stock worth $126,709,000 after buying an additional 11,900 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at HCA Healthcare

In other HCA Healthcare news, EVP Michael R. Mcalevey sold 3,892 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $473.79, for a total value of $1,843,990.68. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 3,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,652,105.73. The trade was a 52.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HCA has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Bank of America upped their target price on HCA Healthcare from $430.00 to $470.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $431.00 to $452.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on HCA Healthcare from $400.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Truist Financial increased their target price on HCA Healthcare from $495.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $505.00 to $520.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $488.75.

HCA Healthcare Stock Performance

Shares of HCA stock opened at $470.52 on Friday. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 52-week low of $295.00 and a 52-week high of $520.00. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $480.37 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $433.92. The company has a market capitalization of $107.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.19, a PEG ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.36.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last released its earnings results on Friday, October 24th. The company reported $6.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.64 by $1.32. HCA Healthcare had a negative return on equity of 792.25% and a net margin of 8.53%.The company had revenue of $19.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.55 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $4.90 earnings per share. HCA Healthcare’s quarterly revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.