HCA Healthcare Insiders Sold US$19m Of Shares Suggesting Hesitancy

Many HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) insiders ditched their stock over the past year, which may be of interest to the company’s shareholders. Knowing whether insiders are buying is usually more helpful when evaluating insider transactions, as insider selling can have various explanations. However, shareholders should take a deeper look if several insiders are selling stock over a specific time period.

Although we don’t think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.

See our latest analysis for HCA Healthcare

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At HCA Healthcare

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the insider, Michael Cuffe, sold US$3.6m worth of shares at a price of US$284 per share. While insider selling is a negative, to us, it is more negative if the shares are sold at a lower price. The good news is that this large sale was at well above current price of US$228. So it is hard to draw any strong conclusion from it.

In the last year HCA Healthcare insiders didn’t buy any company stock. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Insiders At HCA Healthcare Have Sold Stock Recently

Over the last three months, we’ve seen significant insider selling at HCA Healthcare. In total, insiders sold US$1.8m worth of shares in that time, and we didn’t record any purchases whatsoever. This may suggest that some insiders think that the shares are not cheap.

Insider Ownership

For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company insiders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. HCA Healthcare insiders own 1.5% of the company, currently worth about US$903m based on the recent share price. This kind of significant ownership by insiders does generally increase the chance that the company is run in the interest of all shareholders.

So What Do The HCA Healthcare Insider Transactions Indicate?

Insiders haven’t bought HCA Healthcare stock in the last three months, but there was some selling. Looking to the last twelve months, our data doesn’t show any insider buying. On the plus side, HCA Healthcare makes money, and is growing profits. It is good to see high insider ownership, but the insider selling leaves us cautious. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it’s beneficial to identify the risks facing HCA Healthcare. In terms of investment risks, we’ve identified 2 warning signs with HCA Healthcare and understanding them should be part of your investment process.

Of course HCA Healthcare may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of high quality companies.

For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions of direct interests only, but not derivative transactions or indirect interests.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.