Plato Investment Management Ltd Purchases 1,624 Shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA)

Plato Investment Management Ltd grew its holdings in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 51.6% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 4,770 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,624 shares during the period. Plato Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $1,937,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of HCA. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC bought a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Bangor Savings Bank increased 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 purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC lifted its position in HCA Healthcare by 284.0% during the second quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC now owns 96 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on HCA. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on HCA Healthcare from $395.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Wolfe Research upgraded HCA Healthcare to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $378.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Leerink Partners increased their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $367.00 to $396.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of HCA Healthcare in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $427.00 price target for the company. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $385.00.

HCA Healthcare Stock Down 1.1 %

HCA Healthcare stock opened at $345.36 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $387.05 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $357.11. 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 52-week low of $237.57 and a 52-week high of $417.14. The firm has a market cap of $87.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.51, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.68.

HCA Healthcare Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Erol R. Akdamar sold 2,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $2,415,579. The trade was a 29.76 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Phillip G. Billington sold 3,897 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total value of $1,363,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 52,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,445,700. This trade represents a 6.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 15,155 shares of company stock valued at $5,608,990 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

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.