HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) Upgraded at Sanford C. Bernstein

Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA – Get Rating) from a market perform rating to an outperform rating in a research report sent to investors on Thursday, MarketBeat reports. They currently have $271.00 target price on the stock, down from their prior target price of $273.00.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $275.00 to $240.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 26th. Credit Suisse Group decreased their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $296.00 to $260.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 25th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $277.00 to $254.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 25th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $289.00 to $241.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 26th. Finally, Cowen cut their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $265.00 to $241.00 in a report on Monday, April 25th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Buy and an average price target of $261.82.

HCA opened at $215.55 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 87.46. HCA Healthcare has a 52-week low of $198.69 and a 52-week high of $279.02. The company has a 50 day moving average of $235.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $243.19. The company has a market cap of $63.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.14, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.61.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 22nd. The company reported $4.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.27 by ($0.15). HCA Healthcare had a return on equity of 405.72% and a net margin of 11.40%. The business had revenue of $14.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.72 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $4.14 earnings per share. HCA Healthcare’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that HCA Healthcare will post 17.15 earnings per share for the current year.

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 16th will be given a dividend of $0.56 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 15th. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.04%. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio is currently 10.54%.

In related news, SVP Jennifer Berres sold 2,358 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $218.87, for a total value of $516,095.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 11,392 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,493,367.04. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Joseph A. Sowell III sold 11,522 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $269.00, for a total transaction of $3,099,418.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have bought 91,370 shares of company stock valued at $19,373,375 and have sold 14,380 shares valued at $3,723,203. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of HCA. Prospera Financial Services Inc bought a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 3rd quarter valued at about $237,000. Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 40.3% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 50,875 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,349,000 after purchasing an additional 14,619 shares in the last quarter. Macquarie Group Ltd. lifted its stake in HCA Healthcare by 2.3% during the third quarter. Macquarie Group Ltd. now owns 1,097,209 shares of the company’s stock valued at $266,315,000 after buying an additional 24,187 shares in the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lifted its stake in HCA Healthcare by 9.0% during the third quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 6,901 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,674,000 after buying an additional 572 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ibex Wealth Advisors purchased a new stake in HCA Healthcare during the third quarter valued at about $158,000. Institutional investors own 67.87% of the company’s stock.

HCA Healthcare Company Profile (Get Rating)

HCA Healthcare, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides health care services company in the United States. The company 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.

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