Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Lowers Holdings in HCA Healthcare, Inc. $HCA

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. trimmed its holdings in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 12.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,443 shares of the company’s stock after selling 643 shares during the quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $1,535,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Sciencast Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 1st quarter worth about $2,240,000. Redwood Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Redwood Investments LLC now owns 4,420 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,527,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Financial Strategies Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 13.4% during the 1st quarter. Financial Strategies Group Inc. now owns 26,878 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,019,000 after acquiring an additional 3,184 shares in the last quarter. Stance Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 2,419.1% during the 1st quarter. Stance Capital LLC now owns 14,359 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,962,000 after acquiring an additional 13,789 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UniSuper Management Pty Ltd raised its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 59,668 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,618,000 after purchasing an additional 358 shares during the last quarter. 62.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

HCA Healthcare Stock Down 1.1%

HCA stock opened at $413.63 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $381.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $361.47. The company has a market cap of $96.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.39, a PEG ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.07. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 12 month low of $289.98 and a 12 month high of $420.98.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 25th. The company reported $6.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.20 by $0.64. The business had revenue of $18.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.49 billion. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.21% and a negative return on equity of 7,363.11%. The business’s revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $5.50 EPS. HCA Healthcare has set its FY 2025 guidance at 25.500-27.000 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 16th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on HCA. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $360.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of HCA Healthcare from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 5th. Bank of America downgraded shares of HCA Healthcare from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $394.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $444.00 price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $385.00 to $375.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $401.83.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 3,836 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $418.84, for a total transaction of $1,606,670.24. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 31,503 shares in the company, valued at $13,194,716.52. This trade represents a 10.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.