HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) Hits New 12-Month High – What’s Next?
by Danessa Lincoln · The Markets DailyShares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA – Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $529.53 and last traded at $527.6130, with a volume of 841332 shares. The stock had previously closed at $502.05.
Trending Headlines about HCA Healthcare
Here are the key news stories impacting HCA Healthcare this week:
- Positive Sentiment: HCA’s share performance is strong on a year‑over‑year basis (shares up ~75% YoY), reinforcing momentum and investor confidence in the company’s results and outlook. Read More.
- Positive Sentiment: Zacks and other analysts highlight earnings growth and price strength; Zacks added HCA to focus coverage and raised FY‑2026 EPS estimates, supporting forward earnings momentum and valuation. Read More.
- Positive Sentiment: HCA raised its quarterly dividend (new quarterly payout announced), which narrows yield risk and is a modest positive for income‑oriented investors. Read More.
- Positive Sentiment: Large institutional flows and stake increases (e.g., Norges Bank, Pacer, Viking Global) point to strong institutional demand and provide technical/supportive buying pressure for the stock. Read More.
- Neutral Sentiment: HCA completed a 43‑hospital EHR rollout and is tracking success metrics — operational execution that can improve efficiency and integration over time but has a gradual, not immediate, earnings impact. Read More.
- Neutral Sentiment: Local expansion moves — HCA Houston Healthcare Tomball acquired Supreme Care ER and StoneSprings plans a freestanding ER conversion — small, market‑level capacity adds that could modestly lift volumes in those geographies. Read More.
- Neutral Sentiment: HCA sold ASC real estate — a financing/portfolio move that could free capital or change lease terms; impact depends on transaction use of proceeds. Read More.
- Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: two senior VPs disclosed multi‑million dollar sales (Christopher Wyatt sold ~$2.0M; Jennifer Berres sold ~$4.13M). Significant insider sales can create short‑term selling pressure or raise governance/portfolio‑rebalancing questions. Read More. Read More.
- Negative Sentiment: Zacks/other outlets flagged a downward revision to HCA’s Q1 EPS forecast, which can pressure near‑term expectations even as FY estimates were raised. Read More.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on HCA Healthcare from $500.00 to $558.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $541.00 price target on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Monday. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of HCA Healthcare in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Barclays lifted their price target on HCA Healthcare from $494.00 to $551.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Zacks Research cut HCA Healthcare from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 27th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $523.27.
HCA Healthcare Stock Up 0.9%
The business has a 50-day moving average price of $482.80 and a 200-day moving average price of $448.23. The company has a market capitalization of $120.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.36.
HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The company reported $8.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.37 by $0.64. HCA Healthcare had a negative return on equity of 409.11% and a net margin of 8.97%.The firm had revenue of $19.51 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.67 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $6.22 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. HCA Healthcare has set its FY 2026 guidance at 29.100-31.500 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 EPS for the current year.
HCA Healthcare Increases Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.78 per share. This is an increase from HCA Healthcare’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.15%.
Insider Activity
In related news, SVP Jennifer Berres sold 8,020 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $514.58, for a total transaction of $4,126,931.60. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 11,993 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,171,357.94. The trade was a 40.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Christopher F. Wyatt sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.00, for a total value of $2,020,000.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 44,379 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,411,395. The trade was a 8.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 13,520 shares of company stock worth $6,894,067. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
Institutional Trading of HCA Healthcare
Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 4th quarter worth about $1,021,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in HCA Healthcare by 11.9% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 3,859 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,334,000 after acquiring an additional 409 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 5.5% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 630 shares of the company’s stock worth $241,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 4.3% in the 2nd quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,235 shares of the company’s stock valued at $856,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC increased its position in HCA Healthcare by 5.4% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 13,062 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,004,000 after buying an additional 667 shares during the last quarter. 62.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
About HCA Healthcare
HCA Healthcare is a for‑profit operator of healthcare facilities headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1968, the company owns and operates a network of hospitals and related healthcare facilities and has grown through organic expansion and acquisitions to become a large provider of inpatient and outpatient services.
The company’s core activities include the operation of acute care hospitals, freestanding surgical and emergency centers, and outpatient clinics. HCA’s services encompass inpatient care, surgical services, emergency medicine, diagnostic imaging and laboratory testing, and various outpatient and ambulatory care offerings.