36,505 HCA Healthcare, Inc. $HCA Shares Sold by Sanders Capital LLC

Sanders Capital LLC lowered its position in shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,791,782 shares of the company’s stock after selling 36,505 shares during the quarter. HCA Healthcare accounts for approximately 3.7% of Sanders Capital LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. Sanders Capital LLC’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $3,751,805,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. MidFirst Bank bought a new stake in HCA Healthcare during the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Clearstead Trust LLC acquired a new position in HCA Healthcare in the second quarter worth approximately $29,000. Latitude Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in HCA Healthcare during the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Delos Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in HCA Healthcare during the second quarter valued at about $35,000. 62.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on HCA shares. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $425.00 to $380.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $476.00 price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Monday, July 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on HCA Healthcare from $558.00 to $485.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $450.00 target price on HCA Healthcare in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on HCA Healthcare from $496.00 to $521.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 30th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $480.13.

Key Stories Impacting HCA Healthcare

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

• Positive Sentiment: Investors have welcomed expectations that a Democratic-controlled Congress could provide a policy tailwind for hospitals. However, the anticipated relief is not yet enacted and still depends on legislative and funding steps. HCA Healthcare Gains Policy Tailwind
• Positive Sentiment: HCA is expanding AI tools, with its nurse handoff technology heading to 100 hospitals and ambient AI expected to reach 10,000 physicians by year-end. These deployments could support workflow efficiency. AI nurse handoff tool
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst and technical coverage is supportive: Truist reaffirmed its Buy rating, while Zacks highlighted earnings growth, price strength and a bullish moving-average signal. Truist reaffirms Buy rating Zacks stock outlook
• Neutral Sentiment: HCA completed a $6.5 billion senior notes offering. The report confirms the financing but gives limited detail on its use or effect on borrowing costs. Senior notes offering
• Neutral Sentiment: HCA’s AI chief emphasized that delaying a rollout can be appropriate, suggesting a measured approach that may limit near-term adoption while managing implementation risks. HCA AI rollout strategy
• Negative Sentiment: One report flagged potential payer pressure in HCA’s 2027 outlook, a concern for future hospital reimbursement and margins. Payer pressure outlook
• Negative Sentiment: Pomerantz LLP said it is investigating investor claims involving HCA. The announcement provides no findings, but the inquiry may create a legal overhang. Investor investigation announcement

HCA Healthcare Price Performance

HCA traded down $13.04 on Friday, reaching $494.44. 1,462,203 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,294,314. The company has a market cap of $103.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.38, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.11. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $443.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $445.25. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 52-week low of $353.99 and a 52-week high of $556.52.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The company reported $7.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.65 by $0.57. The company had revenue of $19.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.33 billion. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.61% and a negative return on equity of 198.52%. The company’s revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $6.96 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 30.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 29th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 15th. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 10.34%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Michael J. Schlosser sold 1,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $494.65, for a total transaction of $593,580.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 1,443 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $713,779.95. This trade represents a 45.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Jon M. Foster sold 21,713 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $494.95, for a total value of $10,746,849.35. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,949,500. This represents a 68.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 32,913 shares of company stock valued at $16,481,129. Insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

About HCA Healthcare

HCA Healthcare is a healthcare services company that operates hospitals and other care facilities. Its services include inpatient and outpatient care, emergency treatment, surgery, diagnostic services and specialized care across areas such as cancer and cardiovascular medicine.

The company serves patients in the United States and the United Kingdom through its network of hospitals and outpatient facilities, including surgery centers, urgent care clinics and physician practices.

Founded in 1968, HCA Healthcare is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee.