HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) Shares Gap Down to $314.12

HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) shares gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $314.12, but opened at $297.38. HCA Healthcare shares last traded at $302.35, with a volume of 320,058 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com raised HCA Healthcare from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $315.00 price target on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Barclays initiated coverage on HCA Healthcare in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $356.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $308.00 to $322.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Raymond James upped their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $310.88.

HCA Healthcare Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 35.07, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $323.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $295.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $81.11 billion, a PE ratio of 16.16, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.65.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $5.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.01 by $0.35. HCA Healthcare had a return on equity of 996.30% and a net margin of 8.07%. The company had revenue of $17.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.81 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $4.93 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 11.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 20.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. HCA Healthcare’s payout ratio is currently 13.91%.

HCA Healthcare declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $6.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 7.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 3,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.79, for a total transaction of $981,728.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 24,929 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,647,967.91. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 3,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.79, for a total transaction of $981,728.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 24,929 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,647,967.91. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Chad J. Wasserman sold 876 shares of the 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 sale, the senior vice president now owns 1,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $520,474. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 14,840 shares of company stock valued at $4,588,869. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of HCA Healthcare

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Stone House Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Centerpoint Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. LifeSteps Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. 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.