HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) Short Interest Update

HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) saw a large decline in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,600,000 shares, a decline of 9.1% from the October 15th total of 2,860,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,220,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.1 days. Approximately 1.4% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Insider Buying and Selling at HCA Healthcare

In related news, insider Erol R. Akdamar sold 2,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $353.00, for a total transaction of $1,023,700.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 6,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,415,579. This represents a 29.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Phillip G. Billington sold 3,897 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 52,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,445,700. The trade was a 6.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 15,155 shares of company stock worth $5,608,990. Insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of HCA. Bangor Savings Bank boosted its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 112.5% in the second quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 85 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in HCA Healthcare in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC grew its stake in HCA Healthcare by 284.0% during the 2nd quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC now owns 96 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. acquired a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the second quarter valued at $33,000. 62.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on HCA. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on HCA Healthcare from $390.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. KeyCorp dropped their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $475.00 to $420.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 28th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $395.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Leerink Partners increased their price target on HCA Healthcare from $367.00 to $396.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of HCA Healthcare to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $385.00.

HCA Healthcare Price Performance

Shares of HCA Healthcare stock traded down $0.02 on Tuesday, hitting $335.83. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 308,248 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,183,799. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 48.71. The company has a market capitalization of $85.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.68. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $384.12 and a 200-day moving average price of $358.11. HCA Healthcare has a 52-week low of $245.03 and a 52-week high of $417.14.

HCA Healthcare Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.79%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.