KBC Group NV Sells 15,396 Shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA)

KBC Group NV lowered its position in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA - Free Report) by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 363,092 shares of the company's stock after selling 15,396 shares during the period. KBC Group NV owned about 0.14% of HCA Healthcare worth $108,982,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Terra Nova Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Terra Nova Asset Management LLC now owns 8,112 shares of the company's stock worth $3,297,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV raised its position in HCA Healthcare by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 421 shares of the company's stock worth $171,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC raised its stake in HCA Healthcare by 1.8% during the third quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,681 shares of the company's stock worth $683,000 after buying an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management grew its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 0.7% in the third quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 4,065 shares of the company's stock worth $1,652,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 2.4% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,301 shares of the company's stock valued at $529,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. 62.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Phillip G. Billington sold 3,897 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total value of $1,363,950.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 52,702 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,445,700. This trade represents a 6.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Erol R. Akdamar sold 2,900 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $353.00, for a total transaction of $1,023,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,843 shares in the company, valued at $2,415,579. This represents a 29.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

HCA Healthcare Trading Up 6.1 %

Shares of HCA traded up $19.11 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $332.18. The company had a trading volume of 2,805,821 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,778,044. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $313.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $353.13. The stock has a market cap of $84.14 billion, a PE ratio of 14.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 48.71. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 1-year low of $281.61 and a 1-year high of $417.14.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The company reported $6.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.03 by $0.19. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.52% and a return on equity of 520.98%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.90 EPS. Research analysts forecast that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 21.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This is an increase from HCA Healthcare's previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. HCA Healthcare's payout ratio is 11.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on HCA shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $380.00 price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $390.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $450.00 to $440.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Bank of America decreased their target price on HCA Healthcare from $380.00 to $370.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company downgraded HCA Healthcare from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $400.00 to $320.00 in a research report on Monday, November 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, HCA Healthcare currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $382.19.

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.