Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Purchases 70,745 Shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its position in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA - Free Report) by 23.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 367,680 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 70,745 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC owned 0.14% of HCA Healthcare worth $149,436,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HCA. Capital World Investors boosted its position in HCA Healthcare by 57.5% in 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 in the last quarter. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare in the second quarter worth about $131,527,000. Darsana Capital Partners LP raised its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 53.3% in the second quarter. Darsana Capital Partners LP now owns 1,150,000 shares of the company's stock worth $369,472,000 after acquiring an additional 400,000 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB bought a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare in the first quarter worth about $95,882,000. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc raised its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 30.4% in the first quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 721,318 shares of the company's stock worth $240,581,000 after acquiring an additional 168,093 shares during the last quarter. 62.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 8,358 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $385.42, for a total transaction of $3,221,340.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 29,678 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,438,494.76. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $390.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target 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. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $392.00 price target on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $405.00 to $438.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $427.00 target price for the company. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $379.17.

HCA Healthcare Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE HCA traded down $1.87 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $354.16. The company had a trading volume of 1,252,655 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,542,979. The company has a market capitalization of $89.71 billion, a PE ratio of 15.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.68. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $389.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $356.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 48.71. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a one year low of $226.48 and a one year high of $417.14.

HCA Healthcare Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.75%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. HCA Healthcare's payout ratio is currently 11.85%.

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.