Graphene Investments SAS Invests $3.50 Million in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA)

Graphene Investments SAS purchased a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 10,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,502,000. HCA Healthcare makes up about 2.1% of Graphene Investments SAS’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Centerpoint Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in HCA Healthcare during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in HCA Healthcare during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in HCA Healthcare in the first quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 1st quarter valued at about $36,000. 62.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on HCA shares. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $335.00 price target on shares of HCA Healthcare in a report on Tuesday. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $356.00 to $367.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on HCA Healthcare from $327.00 to $332.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $359.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 28th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of HCA Healthcare from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, HCA Healthcare has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $326.53.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 1,600 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.00, for a total value of $494,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 34,124 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,544,316. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 6,311 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $316.88, for a total value of $1,999,829.68. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 29,624 shares in the company, valued at $9,387,253.12. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 1,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.00, for a total value of $494,400.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 34,124 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,544,316. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 12,397 shares of company stock valued at $3,921,929. Company insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

HCA Healthcare Trading Up 2.1 %

NYSE HCA traded up $6.61 on Wednesday, reaching $326.31. 945,051 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,102,449. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $215.96 and a fifty-two week high of $344.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 29.26. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $326.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $318.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $85.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.68.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $5.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.01 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $17.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.81 billion. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.20% and a return on equity of 674.49%. HCA Healthcare’s revenue was up 11.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $4.93 EPS. Analysts forecast that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 20.92 earnings per share for the current year.

HCA Healthcare Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th were given a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.81%. HCA Healthcare’s payout ratio is currently 13.16%.

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.