HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) Lifted to “Strong-Buy” at StockNews.com

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) was upgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report issued on Monday.

HCA has been the topic of a number of other research reports. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $371.00 to $360.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $327.00 to $332.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Baird R W upgraded shares of HCA Healthcare to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $335.00 price target on shares of HCA Healthcare in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $322.00 to $329.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $326.53.

HCA Healthcare Trading Down 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE:HCA traded down $6.16 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $315.12. 2,378,014 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,099,817. HCA Healthcare has a one year low of $215.96 and a one year high of $344.20. 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 business’s 50 day moving average is $325.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $317.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $82.53 billion, a PE ratio of 15.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.68.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $5.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.01 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $17.34 billion for 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%. HCA Healthcare’s quarterly revenue was up 11.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $4.93 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that HCA Healthcare will post 20.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other HCA Healthcare news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 1,600 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.00, for a total value of $494,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 34,124 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,544,316. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 1,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.00, for a total value of $494,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 34,124 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,544,316. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Kathryn A. Torres sold 1,863 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.18, for a total transaction of $607,673.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 19,612 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,397,042.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 12,397 shares of company stock valued at $3,921,929 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of HCA Healthcare

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of HCA. Centerpoint Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in HCA Healthcare during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. LifeSteps Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

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.