HCA Healthcare, Inc. $HCA Position Boosted by Leuthold Group LLC

Leuthold Group LLC lifted its position in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 6.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 24,446 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,441 shares during the period. HCA Healthcare makes up 0.9% of Leuthold Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 26th largest position. Leuthold Group LLC’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $10,432,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of HCA. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $5,069,974,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in HCA Healthcare by 20.5% during the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,707,473 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,835,397,000 after purchasing an additional 799,761 shares during the last quarter. Darsana Capital Partners LP boosted its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 46.7% during the second quarter. Darsana Capital Partners LP now owns 1,100,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $428,879,000 after buying an additional 350,000 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in HCA Healthcare during the second quarter worth approximately $410,992,000. Finally, Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new position in HCA Healthcare in the second quarter worth approximately $371,138,000. Institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at HCA Healthcare

In other HCA Healthcare news, EVP Michael J. Schlosser sold 1,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $494.65, for a total value of $593,580.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 1,443 shares in the company, valued at $713,779.95. This represents a 45.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Jon Foster sold 21,713 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction on Friday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $494.95, for a total transaction of $10,746,849.35. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,949,500. This trade represents a 68.47% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 32,913 shares of company stock worth $16,481,129. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

HCA Healthcare Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of HCA Healthcare stock opened at $504.85 on Tuesday. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 1 year low of $353.99 and a 1 year high of $556.52. The company has a market cap of $105.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.11. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $445.41 and a 200 day moving average price of $445.45.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The company reported $7.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.65 by $0.57. The company had revenue of $19.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.33 billion. HCA Healthcare had a negative return on equity of 198.52% and a net margin of 8.61%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $6.96 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 30.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 29th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 15th will be given a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 15th. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. HCA Healthcare’s payout ratio is presently 10.34%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on HCA shares. TD Cowen upped their price target on HCA Healthcare from $460.00 to $486.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on HCA Healthcare from $425.00 to $380.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on HCA Healthcare from $490.00 to $425.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $476.00 target price on HCA Healthcare in a report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Mizuho set a $495.00 price target on HCA Healthcare in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $480.13.

About HCA Healthcare

HCA Healthcare is a healthcare services company that operates hospitals and other care facilities. Its services include inpatient and outpatient care, emergency treatment, surgery, diagnostic services and specialized care across areas such as cancer and cardiovascular medicine.

The company serves patients in the United States and the United Kingdom through its network of hospitals and outpatient facilities, including surgery centers, urgent care clinics and physician practices.

Founded in 1968, HCA Healthcare is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee.