HCA Healthcare (HCA) AI Stock Analysis

• Market Cap: $83.86B
• Dividend Yield: 0.78%
• Average Volume (3M): 1.65M
• Price to Earnings (P/E): 15.5
• Beta (1Y): 0.51
• Revenue Growth: 7.30%
• EPS Growth: N/A
• Country: US
• Employees: 226,000
• Sector: Healthcare
• Sector Strength: 74
• Industry: Medical - Care Facilities
• EPS (TTM): 6.22
• Shares Outstanding: 246,203,310
• 10 Day Avg. Volume: 1,889,300
• 30 Day Avg. Volume: 1,652,915
• PEG Ratio: N/A
• Price to Book (P/B): N/A
• Price to Sales (P/S): 1.16
• Price to Cash Flow (P/CF): 8.00
• P/FCF Ratio: 7.00
• Enterprise Value/Market Cap: 1.47
• Enterprise Value/Revenue: N/A
• Enterprise Value/Gross Profit: 4.29
• Enterprise Value/Ebitda: N/A
• 1Y Price Target: $372.18
• Price Target Upside: 8.49% Upside
• Rating Consensus: Moderate Buy
• Number of Analyst Covering: 13

HCA Healthcare demonstrates strong revenue growth and cash flow generation, which are major strengths. The company's earnings call highlighted robust financial metrics and operational resilience, contributing positively to the outlook. However, concerns about declining profit margins, high leverage due to negative equity, and neutral technical indicators impact the stock's overall score. The stock is fairly valued, providing potential stability.

Positive Factors

Financial Performance

HCA recorded an $80m year-over-year benefit from DPP largely driven by now quarterly accrual of NC and an OOP payment.

Shareholder Returns

HCA continues to generate strong free cash flow and is deploying capital toward an aggressive $10 billion share buyback.

Volume Growth

HCA saw broad-based volume growth, with management still thinking its healthcare demand assumptions are appropriate for the year at +3-4% volume growth.

Negative Factors

Market Response

The negative response (-3.9% vs. S&P 500 +0.7% and Health Care S&P 500 +0.5%) to a strong report was discouraging.

Policy Volatility

HCA and the group are expected to remain volatile around the policy news flow, with overreactions presenting buying opportunities.

Political Uncertainty

Management's conservative guidance for FY25 financial metrics is seen as a prudent move given the current political uncertainties affecting hospital stocks.

HCA Healthcare Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company Description

HCA Healthcare, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides health care services company in the United States. The company 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. It also operates outpatient health care facilities consisting of freestanding ambulatory surgery centers, freestanding emergency care facilities, urgent care facilities, walk-in clinics, diagnostic and imaging centers, rehabilitation and physical therapy centers, radiation and oncology therapy centers, physician practices, and various other facilities. In addition, the company operates psychiatric hospitals, which provide therapeutic programs comprising child, adolescent and adult psychiatric care, adolescent and adult alcohol, drug abuse treatment, and counseling services. As of December 31, 2021, it operated 182 hospitals, including 175 general and acute care hospitals, five psychiatric hospitals, and two rehabilitation hospitals; 125 freestanding surgery centers; and 21 freestanding endoscopy centers in 20 states and England. The company was formerly known as HCA Holdings, Inc. HCA Healthcare, Inc. was founded in 1968 and is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee.

How the Company Makes Money

HCA Healthcare generates revenue primarily through patient services, making money from a diversified stream of healthcare operations. The company earns income by providing medical treatments, surgeries, diagnostic services, and other healthcare-related services to patients. A significant portion of its revenue comes from hospital inpatient care, outpatient services, and emergency room visits. HCA Healthcare also receives payments from insurance companies, government healthcare programs like Medicare and Medicaid, and directly from patients. Additionally, the company benefits from strategic partnerships with medical technology firms, pharmaceutical companies, and various healthcare providers, which help expand its service offerings and improve operational efficiency. These partnerships and collaborations enhance HCA's ability to deliver integrated healthcare solutions, thereby contributing to its financial growth.

HCA Healthcare Financial Statement Overview

Summary

HCA Healthcare shows robust revenue growth and strong cash flow generation, which are key strengths. However, the decline in profit margins and high leverage due to negative equity are significant concerns. While the cash flow position is strong, the company needs to address profitability issues and manage its high debt levels to ensure long-term financial stability.

Income Statement

HCA Healthcare shows consistent revenue growth with a 8.66% increase from 2023 to 2024. However, the gross profit margin is notably lower in 2024, indicating rising costs or inefficiencies. The net profit margin has decreased significantly from previous years, reflecting challenges in maintaining profitability. The EBIT and EBITDA margins are healthy, but have also seen a decline compared to prior years.

Balance Sheet

The company has a high debt-to-equity ratio due to negative stockholders' equity, indicating potential financial risk and reliance on debt. There is no equity cushion, which poses a risk in volatile market conditions. The return on equity is negative due to negative equity, masking the company's ability to generate returns for shareholders, despite positive net income.

Cash Flow

HCA Healthcare demonstrates strong operating cash flow, which has increased over the years, highlighting efficient cash generation from operations. The free cash flow has also grown, reflecting good control over capital expenditures. The operating cash flow to net income ratio is robust, suggesting solid cash flow generation relative to net income.

Breakdown
Dec 2024	Dec 2023	Dec 2022	Dec 2021	Dec 2020
Income Statement		Total Revenue
70.60B	64.97B	60.23B	58.75B	51.53B
	Gross Profit
28.68B	9.63B	50.86B	49.27B	43.16B
	EBIT
10.55B	9.63B	9.10B	9.79B	7.32B
	EBITDA
13.86B	12.72B	13.29B	14.25B	9.73B
	Net Income Common Stockholders
5.76B	5.24B	5.64B	6.96B	3.75B
Balance Sheet		Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments
1.93B	1.02B	908.00M	1.45B	1.79B
	Total Assets
59.51B	56.21B	52.44B	50.74B	47.49B
	Total Debt
45.24B	41.86B	39.84B	36.33B	32.68B
	Net Debt
43.30B	40.92B	38.93B	34.88B	30.88B
	Total Liabilities
58.96B	55.15B	52.51B	49.25B	44.60B
	Stockholders Equity
-2.50B	-1.77B	-2.77B	-933.00M	572.00M
Cash Flow		Free Cash Flow
5.64B	4.69B	4.13B	5.38B	6.40B
	Operating Cash Flow
10.51B	9.43B	8.52B	8.96B	9.23B
	Investing Cash Flow
-4.93B	-5.32B	-3.39B	-2.64B	-3.39B
	Financing Cash Flow
-4.58B	-4.09B	-5.66B	-6.66B	-4.68B

HCA Healthcare Technical Analysis

• Technical Analysis Sentiment: Positive
• Last Price: 343.04
• 50DMA: Positive
• 100DMA: Positive
• 200DMA: Negative
• MACD: Negative
• RSI: Neutral
• STOCH: Neutral

Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For HCA, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 343.04 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 335.00, above the 50-day MA of 330.25, and below the 200-day MA of 345.30, indicating a neutral trend. The MACD of 2.03 indicates Negative momentum. The RSI at 55.40 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 79.48 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for HCA.

HCA Healthcare Peers Comparison

Name	Overall Rating	Market Cap	P/E Ratio	ROE	Dividend Yield	Revenue Growth	EPS Growth
MOH	80 Outperform	$18.87B	16.89	26.72%	―	16.71%	12.23%
THC	78 Outperform	$11.78B	3.84	38.12%	―	-1.79%	-41.85%
UHS	76 Outperform	$11.43B	10.43	18.35%	0.45%	9.73%	51.87%
CNC	74 Outperform	$31.68B	10.22	12.59%	―	8.85%	33.30%
HUM	69 Neutral	$35.61B	29.55	7.40%	1.35%	10.70%	-49.85%
HCA	67 Neutral	$83.86B	15.48	-230.22%	0.78%	7.30%	―
Sector *	52 Neutral	$5.28B	3.75	-42.72%	2.86%	17.70%	2.03%

HCA Healthcare Corporate Events

HCA Healthcare Approves New Compensation Program

On April 24, 2025, HCA Healthcare‘s Board of Directors approved the 2025-2026 compensation program for non-management directors, which includes cash retainers and equity awards. The company also held its Annual Meeting on the same day, where key decisions were made, including the election of directors, approval of amendments to the stock incentive plan, and ratification of Ernst & Young LLP as the accounting firm. Stockholder proposals on golden parachutes and acquisition strategy were not approved.

Spark’s Take on HCA Stock

According to Spark, TipRanks’ AI Analyst, HCA is a Outperform.

HCA Healthcare’s overall stock score reflects strong revenue growth and cash flow generation, offset by declining profit margins and high leverage. The valuation remains attractive, and the latest earnings call showcases operational resilience. However, technical indicators suggest weak momentum, which tempers the overall positive outlook.

To see Spark’s full report on HCA stock, click here.

HCA Healthcare Q1 2025 Financial Results Announced

On April 25, 2025, HCA Healthcare announced its financial results for the first quarter of 2025, reporting revenues of $18.321 billion and a net income of $1.610 billion. The company declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.72 per share, payable on June 30, 2025. The results showed a growth in same facility admissions and emergency room visits, although outpatient surgeries declined. HCA Healthcare also repurchased 7.762 million shares of its common stock during the quarter. The company reaffirmed its 2025 guidance, indicating confidence in its performance and the growing demand for healthcare services.

Spark’s Take on HCA Stock

According to Spark, TipRanks’ AI Analyst, HCA is a Neutral.

HCA Healthcare has strong revenue growth and cash flow generation, but it faces challenges with declining profit margins and high leverage due to negative equity. The stock’s technical indicators suggest weak momentum, though it is reasonably valued. The recent earnings call highlighted operational resilience and strong shareholder returns, contributing positively to the outlook.

To see Spark’s full report on HCA stock, click here.

HCA Healthcare Launches 2025 Executive Performance Program

On February 18, 2025, HCA Healthcare’s Board of Directors adopted the 2025 Executive Officer Performance Excellence Program, which offers performance awards to executive officers based on EBITDA and quality metrics. The program aims to incentivize executives to meet specific financial and quality targets, with awards paid in cash. Additionally, Meg G. Crofton announced her retirement from the Board of Directors, effective April 24, 2025.

HCA Healthcare Secures New Credit Arrangement

On February 20, 2025, HCA Healthcare entered into a material definitive agreement involving a credit arrangement with Bank of America and other lenders. This development is likely to impact the company’s financial structuring and operations, potentially influencing its market positioning and stakeholder relations.