HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,520,000 shares, an increase of 16.6% from the May 31st total of 3,020,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,030,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.4 days. Currently, 1.9% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

HCA Healthcare Stock Down 6.4 %

Shares of NYSE:HCA opened at $321.28 on Monday. HCA Healthcare has a 1 year low of $215.96 and a 1 year high of $344.20. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $325.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $317.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 29.26, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $84.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.02, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.69.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $5.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.01 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $17.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.81 billion. HCA Healthcare had a return on equity of 674.49% and a net margin of 8.20%. HCA Healthcare’s quarterly revenue was up 11.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $4.93 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that HCA Healthcare will post 20.92 earnings per share for the current year.

HCA Healthcare Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th were given a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.82%. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.16%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on HCA. Barclays boosted their price target on HCA Healthcare from $356.00 to $367.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $327.00 to $332.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $371.00 to $360.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $359.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on HCA Healthcare from $322.00 to $329.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, HCA Healthcare currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $326.53.

Insider Activity at HCA Healthcare

In other HCA Healthcare news, SVP Kathryn A. Torres sold 1,863 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.18, for a total transaction of $607,673.34. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 19,612 shares in the company, valued at $6,397,042.16. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 6,311 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $316.88, for a total value of $1,999,829.68. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 29,624 shares in the company, valued at $9,387,253.12. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Kathryn A. Torres sold 1,863 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.18, for a total transaction of $607,673.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 19,612 shares in the company, valued at $6,397,042.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,397 shares of company stock valued at $3,921,929. 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of HCA. Apexium Financial LP purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $361,000. Sanders Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 11,404,003 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,086,836,000 after buying an additional 456,738 shares during the period. Todd Asset Management LLC grew its stake in HCA Healthcare by 17.2% during the 4th quarter. Todd Asset Management LLC now owns 226,563 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,326,000 after acquiring an additional 33,271 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 60.6% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 365,984 shares of the company’s stock worth $99,065,000 after purchasing an additional 138,146 shares during the period. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lifted its position in HCA Healthcare by 15.6% in the 4th quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 199,209 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,922,000 after buying an additional 26,919 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

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.