Centre Asset Management LLC Has $1.37 Million Stock Holdings in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA)

Centre Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 6.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,555 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 274 shares during the period. Centre Asset Management LLC’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $1,367,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Modus Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $85,000. NRI Wealth Management LC acquired a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the fourth quarter worth $2,896,000. DGS Capital Management LLC grew its stake in HCA Healthcare by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 3,871 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,573,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas acquired a new position in HCA Healthcare during the 3rd quarter worth $3,278,000. Finally, American Trust bought a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare in the third quarter worth about $372,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other HCA Healthcare news, SVP Phillip G. Billington sold 3,897 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 52,702 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,445,700. This represents a 6.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Erol R. Akdamar sold 2,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 6,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,415,579. This trade represents a 29.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

HCA Healthcare Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HCA traded down $4.06 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $293.69. 298,426 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 596,824. The company has a market cap of $74.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.19, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 48.71, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.12. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a twelve month low of $271.13 and a twelve month high of $417.14. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $328.27 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $355.06.

HCA Healthcare Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. HCA Healthcare’s payout ratio is presently 11.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on HCA. Barclays lowered their target price on HCA Healthcare from $396.00 to $392.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $392.00 target price on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $390.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Raymond James cut shares of HCA Healthcare from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company downgraded HCA Healthcare from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $400.00 to $320.00 in a research report on Monday, November 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $385.63.

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.