Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Sells 750 Shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund cut its holdings in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 12.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,501 shares of the company’s stock after selling 750 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $2,236,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of HCA. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare in the second quarter valued at $27,000. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC purchased a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Bangor Savings Bank raised its position in HCA Healthcare by 112.5% in the 2nd 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 grew its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 284.0% during the second quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC now owns 96 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on HCA. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on HCA Healthcare in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $427.00 target price for the company. Wolfe Research raised shares of HCA Healthcare to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of HCA Healthcare from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. KeyCorp reduced their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $475.00 to $420.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on HCA Healthcare from $396.00 to $392.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $385.00.

Insider Activity at HCA Healthcare

In other news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 8,358 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $385.42, for a total transaction of $3,221,340.36. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 29,678 shares in the company, valued at $11,438,494.76. This trade represents a 21.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Erol R. Akdamar sold 2,900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $353.00, for a total value of $1,023,700.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 6,843 shares in the company, valued at $2,415,579. This trade represents a 29.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 15,155 shares of company stock worth $5,608,990. 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

HCA Healthcare Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HCA opened at $342.96 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $385.11 and its 200 day moving average is $357.58. The company has a market cap of $86.87 billion, a PE ratio of 15.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.68. 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, Inc. has a twelve month low of $238.82 and a twelve month high of $417.14.

HCA Healthcare Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.77%. HCA Healthcare’s payout ratio is 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.