Q1 EPS Estimates for HCA Healthcare Decreased by Analyst

HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) – Research analysts at Leerink Partnrs dropped their Q1 2025 earnings per share estimates for shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report issued on Monday, January 27th. Leerink Partnrs analyst W. Mayo now anticipates that the company will post earnings per share of $5.80 for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $6.08. The consensus estimate for HCA Healthcare’s current full-year earnings is $21.75 per share. Leerink Partnrs also issued estimates for HCA Healthcare’s Q2 2025 earnings at $6.37 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $5.55 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $7.39 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $25.11 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $6.86 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $7.19 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $6.28 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $8.44 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $28.78 EPS.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The company reported $6.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.03 by $0.19. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.52% and a return on equity of 520.98%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.90 EPS.

HCA has been the topic of a number of other reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $405.00 price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Monday. StockNews.com cut HCA Healthcare from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on HCA Healthcare from $390.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $380.00 target price on shares of HCA Healthcare in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Raymond James cut shares of HCA Healthcare from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $382.19.

HCA Healthcare Price Performance

HCA Healthcare stock opened at $327.80 on Tuesday. HCA Healthcare has a 52-week low of $289.98 and a 52-week high of $417.14. The company’s 50 day moving average is $313.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $353.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 48.71. The firm has a market cap of $83.03 billion, a PE ratio of 14.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.64.

HCA Healthcare Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a $0.72 dividend. This is a positive change from HCA Healthcare’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling at HCA Healthcare

In other news, insider Erol R. Akdamar sold 2,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $353.00, for a total transaction 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. This represents a 29.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Phillip G. Billington sold 3,897 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total value 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On HCA Healthcare

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. MML Investors Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 31.7% during the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 17,816 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,241,000 after buying an additional 4,285 shares during the period. Meritage Group LP acquired a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $150,548,000. Galvin Gaustad & Stein LLC acquired a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the 4th quarter valued at $18,044,000. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare during the third quarter worth approximately $869,000. Finally, NRI Wealth Management LC bought a new stake in HCA Healthcare during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,896,000. Institutional investors own 62.73% of the company’s stock.

HCA Healthcare Company 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.