HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) Shares Acquired by Advisory Alpha LLC

Advisory Alpha LLC grew its position in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 14.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,118 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the period. Advisory Alpha LLC’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $336,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. MML Investors Services LLC raised its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 31.7% in the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 17,816 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,241,000 after acquiring an additional 4,285 shares during the period. Meritage Group LP acquired a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 3rd quarter worth about $150,548,000. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 3rd quarter worth about $869,000. NRI Wealth Management LC acquired a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 4th quarter worth about $2,896,000. Finally, Czech National Bank raised its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 39,543 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,869,000 after purchasing an additional 1,691 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Phillip G. Billington sold 3,897 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total transaction of $1,363,950.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 52,702 shares in the company, valued at $18,445,700. This trade represents a 6.89 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Erol R. Akdamar sold 2,900 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $353.00, for a total transaction of $1,023,700.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 6,843 shares in the company, valued at $2,415,579. This represents a 29.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

HCA Healthcare Price Performance

HCA Healthcare stock opened at $325.18 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $82.37 billion, a PE ratio of 14.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.64. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 52-week low of $278.68 and a 52-week high of $417.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 48.71. The company’s 50 day moving average is $314.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $352.84.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on HCA. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $380.00 price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of HCA Healthcare from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $400.00 to $320.00 in a report on Monday, November 25th. Raymond James downgraded shares of HCA Healthcare from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $406.00 to $355.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $390.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $385.27.

HCA Healthcare Company Profile

HCA Healthcare, Inc, through its subsidiaries, owns and operates hospitals and related healthcare entities 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.