Kentucky Retirement Systems Decreases Stake in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA)

Kentucky Retirement Systems lessened its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA - Free Report) by 11.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 12,945 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,660 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems' holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $5,261,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital World Investors increased its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 57.5% during the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 2,792,377 shares of the company's stock valued at $931,342,000 after buying an additional 1,019,750 shares during the period. Darsana Capital Partners LP increased its position in HCA Healthcare by 53.3% during the 2nd quarter. Darsana Capital Partners LP now owns 1,150,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $369,472,000 after purchasing an additional 400,000 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 741,130 shares of the company's stock valued at $238,110,000 after purchasing an additional 19,812 shares in the last quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. lifted its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 16.4% in the second quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 631,854 shares of the company's stock worth $203,002,000 after buying an additional 88,948 shares during the period. Finally, National Pension Service grew its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 11.9% during the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 550,654 shares of the company's stock worth $223,802,000 after acquiring an additional 58,353 shares during the period. 62.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

HCA Healthcare Stock Performance

HCA stock traded down $2.55 during trading on Friday, reaching $342.96. The stock had a trading volume of 1,863,478 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,615,945. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 52 week low of $238.82 and a 52 week high of $417.14. The firm has a market cap of $86.87 billion, a PE ratio of 15.40, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.68. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 48.71. The stock's 50 day moving average is $385.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $357.92.

HCA Healthcare Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.77%. HCA Healthcare's payout ratio is presently 11.85%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Phillip G. Billington sold 3,897 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total transaction of $1,363,950.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 52,702 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,445,700. The trade was a 6.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Erol R. Akdamar sold 2,900 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $353.00, for a total value of $1,023,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 6,843 shares in the company, valued at $2,415,579. The trade was a 29.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 15,155 shares of company stock valued at $5,608,990 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HCA has been the topic of several recent research reports. Truist Financial upped their price target on HCA Healthcare from $390.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $378.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. UBS Group boosted their price target on HCA Healthcare from $405.00 to $438.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $392.00 target price on shares of HCA Healthcare in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Leerink Partners upped their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $367.00 to $396.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $385.00.

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.