HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) Shares Bought by Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt

Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt grew its position in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 0.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,987 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 105 shares during the quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $3,515,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of HCA. RB Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 25.9% in the first quarter. RB Capital Management LLC now owns 2,432 shares of the company’s stock valued at $610,000 after buying an additional 501 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 18.6% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 11,035 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,766,000 after buying an additional 1,730 shares in the last quarter. Prudential PLC acquired a new position in HCA Healthcare during the 1st quarter worth $1,083,000. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its stake in HCA Healthcare by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 4,499 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,128,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in HCA Healthcare during the 1st quarter worth $248,000. 62.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other HCA Healthcare news, SVP Chad J. Wasserman sold 876 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $330.25, for a total transaction of $289,299.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 1,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $520,474. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 3,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.79, for a total value of $981,728.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 24,929 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,647,967.91. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Chad J. Wasserman sold 876 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $330.25, for a total value of $289,299.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $520,474. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 14,840 shares of company stock worth $4,588,869. Company insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

HCA Healthcare Stock Performance

HCA traded down $2.87 on Wednesday, hitting $311.02. 1,511,041 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,058,563. The company has a 50 day moving average of $320.15 and a 200-day moving average of $280.61. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 35.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $82.26 billion, a PE ratio of 16.42, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.65. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 12-month low of $215.96 and a 12-month high of $335.83.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 30th. The company reported $5.90 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.05 by $0.85. HCA Healthcare had a return on equity of 996.30% and a net margin of 8.07%. The firm had revenue of $17.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.51 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $4.64 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 20.58 earnings per share for the current year.

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

HCA Healthcare Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were given a dividend of $0.66 per share. This is a boost from HCA Healthcare’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.85%. HCA Healthcare’s payout ratio is presently 13.91%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on HCA. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on HCA Healthcare from $308.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Raymond James lifted their price target on HCA Healthcare from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Barclays started coverage on HCA Healthcare in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $356.00 price target for the company. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $315.00 price target on shares of HCA Healthcare in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded HCA Healthcare from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $277.00 to $301.00 in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $314.05.

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.