HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) Shares Sold by D.A. Davidson & CO.

D.A. Davidson & CO. cut its position in shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA - Free Report) by 32.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,725 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,317 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO.'s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $818,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in HCA Healthcare in the 3rd quarter worth about $39,000. Activest Wealth Management raised its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 1,250.0% during the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 135 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Canoe Financial LP acquired a new stake in HCA Healthcare in the 3rd quarter valued at $41,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in HCA Healthcare during the third quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. raised its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 50.0% during the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 150 shares of the company's stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.73% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Jennifer Berres sold 9,533 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $322.59, for a total value of $3,075,250.47. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 15,412 shares in the company, valued at $4,971,757.08. This represents a 38.22 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on HCA shares. Raymond James cut HCA Healthcare from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $380.00 target price on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $430.00 to $390.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $406.00 to $355.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $405.00 price target on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Monday, January 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $385.67.

HCA Healthcare Trading Down 4.7 %

NYSE HCA traded down $15.16 during trading on Friday, hitting $305.79. The stock had a trading volume of 3,469,100 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,739,092. The company has a market capitalization of $75.94 billion, a PE ratio of 13.92, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.64. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a twelve month low of $289.98 and a twelve month high of $417.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.07. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $315.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $349.91.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The company reported $6.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.03 by $0.19. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.16% and a return on equity of 586.47%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $5.90 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 earnings per share for the current year.

HCA Healthcare Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This is a positive change from HCA Healthcare's previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. HCA Healthcare's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.11%.

HCA Healthcare 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.