HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) Rating Lowered to Hold at Zacks Research

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) was downgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $360.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Mizuho boosted their target price on HCA Healthcare from $475.00 to $505.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 27th. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $485.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $474.53.

HCA Healthcare Stock Performance

HCA opened at $512.94 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $452.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $406.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $117.05 billion, a PE ratio of 19.83, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.41. HCA Healthcare has a 52-week low of $289.98 and a 52-week high of $520.00.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 24th. The company reported $6.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.64 by $1.32. HCA Healthcare had a negative return on equity of 792.25% and a net margin of 8.53%.The company had revenue of $19.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.55 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $4.90 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. HCA Healthcare has set its FY 2025 guidance at 27.000-28.000 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that HCA Healthcare will post 24.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at HCA Healthcare

In other news, EVP Michael R. Mcalevey sold 3,892 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $473.79, for a total value of $1,843,990.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 3,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,652,105.73. This represents a 52.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 3,836 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $418.84, for a total transaction of $1,606,670.24. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 31,503 shares in the company, valued at $13,194,716.52. This trade represents a 10.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On HCA Healthcare

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Park Place Capital Corp grew its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 2,336.0% in the 2nd quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 1,218 shares of the company’s stock valued at $474,000 after buying an additional 1,168 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 11.9% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 25,454 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,796,000 after acquiring an additional 2,698 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank lifted its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 4.3% in the 2nd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 558,900 shares of the company’s stock worth $214,115,000 after purchasing an additional 23,100 shares during the period. Cherokee Insurance Co acquired a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare during the second quarter worth $3,869,000. Finally, Harrell Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in HCA Healthcare by 176.3% during the second quarter. Harrell Investment Partners LLC now owns 1,815 shares of the company’s stock valued at $695,000 after acquiring an additional 1,158 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

About HCA Healthcare

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.