HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) Price Target Cut to $500.00 by Analysts at Leerink Partners

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) had its price objective reduced by Leerink Partners from $573.00 to $500.00 in a report issued on Monday morning,MarketScreener reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the stock.

HCA has been the topic of a number of other research reports. KeyCorp cut their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $550.00 to $510.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on HCA Healthcare from $420.00 to $535.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $593.00 to $534.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on HCA Healthcare from $500.00 to $558.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of HCA Healthcare from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 14th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $523.09.

HCA Healthcare Price Performance

Shares of HCA stock opened at $446.38 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $503.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $486.01. HCA Healthcare has a 1-year low of $326.14 and a 1-year high of $556.52. The company has a market cap of $99.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.36.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 24th. The company reported $7.15 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.19 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $19.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.09 billion. HCA Healthcare had a negative return on equity of 295.93% and a net margin of 8.89%.HCA Healthcare’s revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $6.45 EPS. HCA Healthcare has set its FY 2026 guidance at 29.100-31.500 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that HCA Healthcare will post 30.15 earnings per share for the current year.

HCA Healthcare Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be given a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 10.99%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other HCA Healthcare news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $498.09, for a total value of $747,135.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 30,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,944,194.27. This trade represents a 4.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael R. Mcalevey sold 1,694 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $533.37, for a total transaction of $903,528.78. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 8,853 shares in the company, valued at $4,721,924.61. This represents a 16.06% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 15,214 shares of company stock worth $7,797,595. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,566,643 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,532,563,000 after buying an additional 76,039 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 4,999,422 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,334,040,000 after purchasing an additional 40,086 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in HCA Healthcare by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,663,705 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,702,738,000 after buying an additional 13,565 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 4th quarter worth $1,262,513,000. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,311,112 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,078,966,000 after purchasing an additional 245,887 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

More HCA Healthcare News

Here are the key news stories impacting HCA Healthcare this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Management reaffirmed FY2026 guidance and expects 2%–3% volume growth while acknowledging headwinds, which supports the company’s forward earnings outlook. HCA projects 2%-3% volume growth
• Positive Sentiment: HCA says improvements in its revenue‑cycle operations are boosting cash collections and helping offset rising denials/underpayments — a near‑term margin and cash‑flow positive. Revenue cycle paying dividends
• Positive Sentiment: Leadership hire: Cynthia Cifuentes‑Finkel will become SVP of Marketing & Corporate Affairs (effective June 8), adding senior marketing/communications capacity ahead of growth initiatives. HCA names new SVP
• Neutral Sentiment: Local operations: a new HCA Florida Gainesville hospital is preparing to open next month — incremental local growth but limited immediate impact on enterprise results. Gainesville hospital opening
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary pieces and index signals are discussing healthcare positioning; useful for macro context but not company‑specific catalysts. Market update
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple analysts reduced price targets and trimmed forecasts after Q1 results (despite an in‑line EPS), signaling more cautious near‑term sentiment. Firms lowering targets include Stephens, Oppenheimer, TD Cowen, Leerink, RBC and Truist. Analysts slash forecasts
• Negative Sentiment: Q1 dynamics: EPS roughly in‑line but seasonal volume softness, shifting payer mix and projected ACA/exchange pressures (company cites a $600M–$900M headwind range) are weighing on near‑term revenue and margin expectations. Q1 deep dive
• Negative Sentiment: Financing: HCA filed a proposed public offering of senior notes to raise proceeds for general corporate purposes (may include refinancing). New debt issuance could modestly pressure credit metrics depending on size and terms. Proposed senior notes offering

About HCA Healthcare

HCA Healthcare is a for‑profit operator of healthcare facilities headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1968, the company owns and operates a network of hospitals and related healthcare facilities and has grown through organic expansion and acquisitions to become a large provider of inpatient and outpatient services.

The company’s core activities include the operation of acute care hospitals, freestanding surgical and emergency centers, and outpatient clinics. HCA’s services encompass inpatient care, surgical services, emergency medicine, diagnostic imaging and laboratory testing, and various outpatient and ambulatory care offerings.