HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) Price Target Raised to $560.00 at Argus

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) had its price target lifted by stock analysts at Argus from $530.00 to $560.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Argus’ target price points to a potential upside of 11.70% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on HCA. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of HCA Healthcare in a report on Monday, December 29th. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of HCA Healthcare from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $425.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Stephens increased their price target on HCA Healthcare from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $500.00 to $558.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Zacks Research cut HCA Healthcare from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 27th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $521.55.

HCA Healthcare Stock Performance

Shares of HCA stock traded down $12.40 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $501.36. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 364,267 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,104,998. HCA Healthcare has a 52-week low of $295.00 and a 52-week high of $527.55. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $480.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $441.12. The stock has a market cap of $114.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.65, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.36.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The company reported $8.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.37 by $0.64. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.97% and a negative return on equity of 409.11%. The company had revenue of $19.51 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.67 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $6.22 earnings per share. The firm’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. Equities research analysts predict that HCA Healthcare will post 24.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $498.09, for a total transaction of $747,135.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 30,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,944,194.27. This trade represents a 4.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of HCA Healthcare

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in HCA. Cerity Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 13.1% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 43,920 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,719,000 after purchasing an additional 5,092 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank lifted its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 4.3% in the second quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 558,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $214,115,000 after acquiring an additional 23,100 shares in the last quarter. Cherokee Insurance Co purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare during the second quarter worth approximately $3,869,000. AlphaQuest LLC boosted its stake in HCA Healthcare by 2,855.2% during the 3rd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 5,999 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,557,000 after purchasing an additional 5,796 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sector Gamma AS lifted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 36.0% in the third quarter. Sector Gamma AS now owns 10,883 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,638,000 after buying an additional 2,883 shares in the last quarter. 62.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

HCA Healthcare Company Profile

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.