California Public Employees Retirement System Sells 25,910 Shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA)

California Public Employees Retirement System lowered its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 6.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 375,204 shares of the company’s stock after selling 25,910 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System owned 0.14% of HCA Healthcare worth $101,560,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of HCA. Stone House Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Centerpoint Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. BluePath Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare in the third quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in HCA Healthcare during the third quarter worth $30,000. Institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

HCA Healthcare Stock Performance

Shares of HCA Healthcare stock opened at $319.43 on Wednesday. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 52 week low of $215.96 and a 52 week high of $335.83. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $324.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $293.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 35.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $84.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.83, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.65.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The company reported $5.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.05 by $0.85. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.07% and a return on equity of 996.30%. The company had revenue of $17.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.51 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.64 EPS. HCA Healthcare’s quarterly revenue was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 20.58 EPS for the current year.

HCA Healthcare Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. This is a boost from HCA Healthcare’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.83%. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.91%.

HCA Healthcare declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 30th that permits the company to repurchase $6.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of HCA Healthcare from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $356.00 price objective for the company. Raymond James boosted their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $303.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $320.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $314.05.

Insider Transactions at HCA Healthcare

In other news, SVP Chad J. Wasserman sold 344 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $321.97, for a total transaction of $110,757.68. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 2,452 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $789,470.44. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other HCA Healthcare news, SVP Chad J. Wasserman sold 876 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $330.25, for a total value of $289,299.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 1,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $520,474. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Chad J. Wasserman sold 344 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $321.97, for a total value of $110,757.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,452 shares in the company, valued at approximately $789,470.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 14,840 shares of company stock valued at $4,588,869 in the last 90 days. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.