ARDT vs NHC vs THC Stock Comparison

Ardent Health, National Healthcare and Tenet Healthcare Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
ARDT Ardent Health, Inc.
$11.84 +12.3% 1M -21.8% 1Y
Market cap
$1.68B
P/E
21.5x
Revenue (TTM)
$6.41B
Div. yield
–
Hospitals Healthcare
1 win
NHC National Healthcare Corp
$212.79 -6.1% 1M +76.8% 1Y
Market cap
$3.30B
P/E
23.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.56B
Div. yield
0.01%
Home Health and Senior Care Healthcare
4 wins
THC Tenet Healthcare Corp
$262.12 +0.9% 1M +21.3% 1Y
Market cap
$22.31B
P/E
10.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$21.81B
Div. yield
–
Hospitals Healthcare
6 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Tenet Healthcare leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Tenet Healthcare 6, National Healthcare 4, Ardent Health 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionARDTNHCTHCLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $1.68B $3.30B $22.31B THC
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 21.5x 23.6x 10.0x THC
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 12.7x — 11.9x THC
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +3.3% +6.9% +5.4% NHC
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 1.2% 9.0% 10.3% THC
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 7.4% 10.0% 18.8% THC
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 0.9x — 2.0x ARDT
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.01% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -21.8% +76.8% +21.3% NHC
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years — +25.5%/yr +29.6%/yr THC
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 59.6% 34.7% 42.2% NHC
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 67/100 78/100 77/100 NHC

Percentile Scorecard

ARDTNHCTHC

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisARDTNHCTHC
Valuation 99 #2 of 92 77 #22 of 92 95 #6 of 92
Growth 45 #48 of 87 79 #19 of 87 73 #24 of 87
Profitability 69 #27 of 86 80 #18 of 86 97 #4 of 86
Financial Health 56 #43 of 97 88 #13 of 97 35 #63 of 97
Shareholder Returns – 67 #19 of 56 86 #9 of 56
Overall 67 78 77
  • ARDT ranked among 102 companies in Healthcare Providers
  • NHC ranked among 102 companies in Healthcare Providers
  • THC ranked among 102 companies in Healthcare Providers

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodARDTNHCTHCSPY
1 month +12.3%-6.1%+0.9% -0.2%
3 months +3.0%-7.8%-0.2% +3.9%
6 months +21.9%+21.8%+47.7% +8.2%
Year to date +34.1%+55.2%+31.9% +12.9%
1 year -21.8%+76.8%+21.3% +12.3%
3 years —+221.9%+393.4% +87.4%
3 years, per year —+47.7%+70.3% +23.3%
5 years —+211.4%+265.2% +67.9%
5 years, per year —+25.5%+29.6% +10.9%
10 years —+228.6%+1,166.9% +261.1%
10 years, per year —+12.6%+28.9% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureARDTNHCTHCSPY
Volatility, 1Y 59.6%34.7%42.2% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 74.0%32.3%34.1% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.160.130.47 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.372.210.50 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -61.2%-34.4%-58.9% -25.4%
From 52-week high -21.8%-14.0%-6.6% -1.2%
52-week high $15.14$247.31$280.77 $779.14
52-week low $7.83$119.44$161.37 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleARDTNHCTHC
P/E now vs peer median 21.4xmedian 24.6x 23.7xmedian 24.6x 9.8xmedian 24.6x
P/S now vs peer median 0.3xmedian 1.6x 2.1xmedian 1.6x 1.0xmedian 1.6x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 4.8xmedian 14.6x 16.4xmedian 14.6x 5.9xmedian 14.6x
P/FCF now vs peer median 5.5xmedian 21.6x 22.7xmedian 21.6x 7.0xmedian 21.6x
P/B now vs peer median 1.0xmedian 3.2x 3.0xmedian 3.2x 3.2xmedian 3.2x
PEG now vs peer median —median 0.66 0.38median 0.66 0.13median 0.66

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsARDTNHCTHC
Revenue $6.41B $1.56B $21.81B
Operating income – $144.68M $4.54B
Net income $125.32M $142.84M $3.17B
Free cash flow $304.76M $146.53M $3.02B
EPS (diluted) $0.55 $8.84 $26.69
Cash & equivalents $724.48M $39.21M $2.17B
Total debt $1.10B – $13.25B
Shares (diluted) 143.05M 15.86M 83.96M
Enterprise value -$974.20M $2.28B $11.32B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricARDTNHCTHC
P/E 21.4x 23.7x 9.8x
P/FCF 5.5x 22.7x 7.0x
P/Operating cash flow 3.3x 17.7x 5.3x
P/S 0.3x 2.1x 1.0x
P/B 1.0x 3.0x 3.2x
P/Tangible book 1.0x 3.0x 4.0x
EV/EBITDA 4.8x 16.4x 5.9x
EV/EBIT 7.9x 21.6x 7.1x
EV/Revenue 0.3x 2.0x 1.5x
EV/FCF 6.8x 21.3x 10.6x
EV/Operating cash flow 4.0x 16.5x 8.0x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) – 0.38 0.13

Growth

14 metrics
MetricARDTNHCTHC
Revenue growth (1Y) 3.3% 6.9% 5.4%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) – 12.8% 3.1%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – – –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – – –
Operating income growth (1Y) – 24.1% 23.5%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) – 57.4% 24.7%
Net income growth (1Y) -61.3% 35.9% 32.4%
Net income CAGR (3Y) – 68.9% 41.1%
EPS growth (1Y) -69.6% 31.6% 65.1%
EPS CAGR (3Y) – 61.9% 77.6%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 70.3% 26.7% 62.9%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) – 44.1% 31.1%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 181.8% 23.2% 94.7%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) – 58.0% 46.5%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricARDTNHCTHC
Gross margin – – –
EBITDA margin 6.7% 12.2% 25.0%
Operating margin – 9.3% 20.8%
Pretax margin 3.2% 11.9% 17.7%
Net margin 1.2% 9.0% 10.3%
FCF margin 4.8% 9.4% 13.9%
Operating cash flow margin 8.0% 12.1% 18.4%
Return on equity 9.7% 12.8% 47.8%
Return on assets 3.2% 9.3% 10.3%
Return on invested capital 7.4% 10.0% 18.8%
Return on capital employed 6.0% 11.2% 17.9%
Asset turnover 1.2x 1.0x 0.7x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 4.1x 1.3x 1.3x
Stock comp / revenue 0.6% 0.3% 0.6%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricARDTNHCTHC
Debt / assets 20.9% – 43.2%
Debt / equity 0.6x – 2.0x
Net debt / EBITDA 0.9x – 2.0x
Debt / FCF 3.6x – 4.4x
Liabilities / assets 66.9% 26.6% 78.6%
Equity / assets 33.1% 73.4% 21.4%
Interest coverage 5.1x 56.6x 5.5x
Current ratio 2.1x 1.9x 1.4x
Quick ratio 1.5x 1.5x 0.9x
Cash ratio 0.7x 0.9x 0.4x
Altman Z-score 2.05 7.18 2.08

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricARDTNHCTHC
Dividend yield – 1.2% –
Net buyback yield – 0.1% 7.8%
Shareholder yield – 1.4% 7.8%
Payout ratio (earnings) – 27.8% –
Payout ratio (FCF) – 27.1% –
Dividend growth (1Y) – 5.6% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – 4.3% –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusARDTNHCTHC
Forward P/E 12.7xFY2026 – 11.9xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $0.93FY2026 – $21.99FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -3.1%FY2026 – +31.0%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +17.2% – -7.1%
Revenue, next fiscal year $6.84BFY2026 – $23.70BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +8.2%FY2026 – +11.2%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +1.4% – -0.3%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersARDTNHCTHC
Held by institutions 76.4% 65.3% 96.2%
Institutions holding 137 250 677
Change in shares held, QoQ +1.4% -0.6% -1.9%
Institutions buying 87 136 331
Institutions selling 36 72 260
Buyers to sellers 2.42 1.89 1.27

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

ARDTNHCTHC
ARDT 1.00 0.22 0.28
NHC 0.22 1.00 0.25
THC 0.28 0.25 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, ARDT, NHC and THC?

Tenet Healthcare (THC) is the largest by market capitalisation: Ardent Health (ARDT) $1.68B, National Healthcare (NHC) $3.30B, Tenet Healthcare (THC) $22.31B.

Which stock is cheaper, ARDT, NHC and THC?

Tenet Healthcare (THC) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Ardent Health (ARDT) 21.5x, National Healthcare (NHC) 23.6x, Tenet Healthcare (THC) 10.0x). On next year's consensus earnings, Tenet Healthcare (THC) is cheapest (Ardent Health (ARDT) 12.7x, Tenet Healthcare (THC) 11.9x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

National Healthcare (NHC) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Ardent Health (ARDT) +3.3%, National Healthcare (NHC) +6.9%, Tenet Healthcare (THC) +5.4%.

Which company is more profitable?

Tenet Healthcare (THC) has the highest net margin (Ardent Health (ARDT) 1.2%, National Healthcare (NHC) 9.0%, Tenet Healthcare (THC) 10.3%). On return on invested capital, Tenet Healthcare (THC) leads (Ardent Health (ARDT) 7.4%, National Healthcare (NHC) 10.0%, Tenet Healthcare (THC) 18.8%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year National Healthcare (NHC) returned the most: Ardent Health (ARDT) -21.8%, National Healthcare (NHC) +76.8%, Tenet Healthcare (THC) +21.3%. Over five years, Tenet Healthcare (THC) compounded fastest (National Healthcare (NHC) +25.5%/yr, Tenet Healthcare (THC) +29.6%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Ardent Health (ARDT) 0.00%, National Healthcare (NHC) 0.01%, Tenet Healthcare (THC) 0.00%. Ardent Health (ARDT) and Tenet Healthcare (THC) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, National Healthcare (NHC) has been the steadiest (Ardent Health (ARDT) 59.6%, National Healthcare (NHC) 34.7%, Tenet Healthcare (THC) 42.2%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, ARDT, NHC and THC?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Tenet Healthcare (THC) leads on 6. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.