HCA gets upgrade on political outlook

Shares of HCA Healthcare got a relative vote of confidence this week from Piper Sandler analyst Sarah James, who early on Wednesday raised her price target for the hospital giant based on favorable winds from the legal and political realms.

James lifted her target for HCA to $163 from $149 after the U.S. Supreme Court’s hearing of a lawsuit seeking to overturn the Affordable Care Act. The questions posed during the hearing, James told clients, suggests the ACA will be upheld in the case, which is commonly known as Texas v. Azar.