HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) Price Target Raised to $367.00 at Barclays

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) had its price target increased by Barclays from $356.00 to $367.00 in a research report report published on Monday, Benzinga reports. Barclays currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on HCA Healthcare from $303.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $330.00 to $359.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut HCA Healthcare from an outperform rating to a market perform rating and raised their target price for the company from $277.00 to $301.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $320.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded HCA Healthcare from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $313.88.

HCA Healthcare Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE:HCA opened at $311.42 on Monday. HCA Healthcare has a 52-week low of $215.96 and a 52-week high of $335.83. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $323.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $295.56. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 29.26. The stock has a market cap of $82.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.52, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.65.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $5.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.01 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $17.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.81 billion. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.20% and a return on equity of 674.49%. The firm’s revenue was up 11.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $4.93 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that HCA Healthcare will post 20.58 EPS for the current year.

HCA Healthcare Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.85%. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.16%.

HCA Healthcare announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, January 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $6.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 3,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.79, for a total value of $981,728.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 24,929 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,647,967.91. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, SVP Chad J. Wasserman sold 344 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $321.97, for a total value of $110,757.68. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,452 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $789,470.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 3,200 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.79, for a total transaction of $981,728.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 24,929 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,647,967.91. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 14,840 shares of company stock valued at $4,588,869. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On HCA Healthcare

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Stone House Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in HCA Healthcare during the third quarter worth about $25,000. BluePath Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in HCA Healthcare in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Centerpoint Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in HCA Healthcare during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

About HCA Healthcare

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.