Treasurer of the State of North Carolina Buys 1,825 Shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA)

Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA - Free Report) by 1.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 104,705 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 1,825 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina's holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $31,427,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HCA. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Tidemark LLC purchased a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Activest Wealth Management increased its position in HCA Healthcare by 1,250.0% during the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 135 shares of the company's stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. raised its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 50.0% in the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 150 shares of the company's stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, Eastern Bank bought a new position in HCA Healthcare in the 4th quarter worth about $62,000. 62.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on HCA. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $405.00 price target on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $392.00 to $366.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of HCA Healthcare from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $380.00 to $370.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Guggenheim assumed coverage on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. They issued a "neutral" rating on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $381.67.

HCA Healthcare Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of HCA traded down $0.86 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $334.69. The company's stock had a trading volume of 436,771 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,387,660. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.07. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 1-year low of $289.98 and a 1-year high of $417.14. The company has a 50 day moving average of $327.83 and a two-hundred day moving average of $335.63. The firm has a market cap of $82.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.48.

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

HCA Healthcare Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th were issued a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. This is an increase from HCA Healthcare's previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. HCA Healthcare's dividend payout ratio is currently 13.11%.

Insider Activity at HCA Healthcare

In other HCA Healthcare news, SVP Jennifer Berres sold 9,533 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $322.59, for a total transaction of $3,075,250.47. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 15,412 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,971,757.08. The trade was a 38.22 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.30% of the stock is owned by 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.