Short Interest in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) Decreases By 16.1%

HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) was the target of a large decline in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,940,000 shares, a decline of 16.1% from the February 28th total of 5,890,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,630,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.0 days. Approximately 2.8% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Insider Activity at HCA Healthcare

In related news, SVP Jennifer Berres sold 9,533 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $322.59, for a total value of $3,075,250.47. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 15,412 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,971,757.08. This represents a 38.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On HCA Healthcare

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 12.8% during the third quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 2,687 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,092,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA raised its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 4.4% during the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 3,022 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,228,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the period. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. increased its stake in HCA Healthcare by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 23,090 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,380,000 after purchasing an additional 440 shares in the last quarter. Centiva Capital LP lifted its stake in HCA Healthcare by 37.4% in the third quarter. Centiva Capital LP now owns 13,264 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,391,000 after buying an additional 3,612 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 210.6% during the third quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 306,796 shares of the company’s stock worth $124,691,000 after acquiring an additional 208,015 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

HCA Healthcare Price Performance

Shares of HCA stock traded up $2.61 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $349.64. The company had a trading volume of 1,321,720 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,350,116. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $326.35 and its 200 day moving average is $340.30. HCA Healthcare has a 12 month low of $289.98 and a 12 month high of $417.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $86.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.93, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.07, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.08.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The company reported $6.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.03 by $0.19. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.16% and a return on equity of 586.47%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $5.90 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that HCA Healthcare will post 24.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th were issued a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.82%. This is a positive change from HCA Healthcare’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on HCA. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $405.00 price target on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Monday, January 27th. KeyCorp dropped their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $420.00 to $370.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $380.00 target price on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $405.00 to $384.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $380.00 to $370.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, HCA Healthcare currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $385.67.

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.