New Republic Capital LLC Sells 676 Shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA)

New Republic Capital LLC reduced its stake in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 33.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,334 shares of the company’s stock after selling 676 shares during the period. New Republic Capital LLC’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $400,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. MML Investors Services LLC boosted its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 31.7% in the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 17,816 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,241,000 after purchasing an additional 4,285 shares during the period. Meritage Group LP purchased a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the third quarter worth about $150,548,000. Galvin Gaustad & Stein LLC bought a new stake in HCA Healthcare during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $18,044,000. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 3rd quarter valued at $869,000. Finally, NRI Wealth Management LC bought a new position in HCA Healthcare in the fourth quarter valued at $2,896,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

HCA Healthcare Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of HCA opened at $318.28 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $80.62 billion, a PE ratio of 14.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.07. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 12-month low of $289.98 and a 12-month high of $417.14. The business’s 50 day moving average is $313.75 and its 200 day moving average is $353.51.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The company reported $6.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.03 by $0.19. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.16% and a return on equity of 586.47%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $5.90 EPS. Research analysts expect that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.72 per share. This is an increase from HCA Healthcare’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.90%. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio is presently 12.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Erol R. Akdamar sold 2,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $353.00, for a total value of $1,023,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 6,843 shares in the company, valued at $2,415,579. This trade represents a 29.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Phillip G. Billington sold 3,897 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 14th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,445,700. This represents a 6.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HCA has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $380.00 target price on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Raymond James cut HCA Healthcare from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Bank of America dropped their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $380.00 to $370.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $390.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $405.00 target price on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Monday, January 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, HCA Healthcare currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $385.67.

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.