Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Makes New Investment in HCA Healthcare, Inc. $HCA

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 53,763 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,962,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. raised its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. now owns 2,026 shares of the company’s stock valued at $946,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV grew its stake in HCA Healthcare by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV now owns 749 shares of the company’s stock worth $350,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 7.5% during the 4th quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 300 shares of the company’s stock worth $140,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. Anchyra Partners LLC grew its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 3.7% in the first quarter. Anchyra Partners LLC now owns 587 shares of the company’s stock valued at $278,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. Finally, Plato Investment Management Ltd boosted its stake in HCA Healthcare by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 3,908 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,833,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. 62.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

HCA Healthcare Trading Down 1.9%

NYSE:HCA opened at $419.19 on Friday. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a twelve month low of $353.99 and a twelve month high of $556.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.03, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.10. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $400.24 and its 200 day simple moving average is $441.63.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 24th. The company reported $7.59 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $20.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.76 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $6.84 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 29.42 earnings per share for the current year.

HCA Healthcare Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald cut their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $588.00 to $525.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut 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 note on Tuesday, July 28th. KeyCorp dropped their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $475.00 to $435.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 27th. Wall Street Zen cut HCA Healthcare from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $425.00 to $380.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 27th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $462.64.

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.