HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) Shares Purchased by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 0.2% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 397,019 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 628 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $161,360,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HCA. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the third quarter valued at about $39,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in HCA Healthcare during the third quarter worth $41,000. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 2nd quarter worth $33,000. Canoe Financial LP acquired a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 3rd quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in HCA Healthcare during the third quarter worth about $44,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at HCA Healthcare

In other news, 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 sale, the senior vice president now owns 52,702 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,445,700. The trade was a 6.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Erol R. Akdamar sold 2,900 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,843 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,415,579. This trade represents a 29.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on HCA shares. Wolfe Research upgraded HCA Healthcare to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $380.00 price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $406.00 to $355.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare from $450.00 to $440.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, KeyCorp decreased their price target on HCA Healthcare from $475.00 to $420.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $385.63.

HCA Healthcare Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:HCA opened at $297.52 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $75.36 billion, a PE ratio of 13.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.63. The company’s 50 day moving average is $348.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $357.51. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 52 week low of $263.22 and a 52 week high of $417.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 48.71.

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 dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.89%. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.85%.

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.