CHE vs AVAH vs NHC Stock Comparison

Chemed, Aveanna Healthcare Holdings and National Healthcare Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
CHE Chemed Corp
$508.35 -0.6% 1M +16.4% 1Y
Market cap
$7.30B
P/E
25.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$2.66B
Div. yield
–
Home Health and Senior Care Healthcare
2 wins
NHC National Healthcare Corp
$212.79 -6.1% 1M +76.8% 1Y
Market cap
$3.34B
P/E
23.8x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.56B
Div. yield
0.01%
Home Health and Senior Care Healthcare
3 wins

Head to Head

10 decided of 12

Aveanna Healthcare Holdings leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Aveanna Healthcare Holdings 5, National Healthcare 3, Chemed 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionCHEAVAHNHCLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $7.30B $2.84B $3.34B CHE
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 25.9x 10.9x 23.8x AVAH
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 19.2x 14.9x — AVAH
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +5.2% +16.8% +6.9% AVAH
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months — 10.2% 9.0% AVAH
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — 18.4% 10.0% AVAH
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — 4.0x — –
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.01% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +16.4% +31.9% +76.8% NHC
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +2.6%/yr +10.7%/yr +25.5%/yr NHC
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 29.8% 47.7% 34.7% CHE
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 43/100 67/100 78/100 NHC

Percentile Scorecard

CHEAVAHNHC

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

AxisCHEAVAHNHC
Valuation 45 #51 of 92 70 #28 of 92 77 #22 of 92
Growth 14 #75 of 87 84 #15 of 87 79 #19 of 87
Profitability 62 #33 of 86 94 #6 of 86 80 #18 of 86
Financial Health 48 #51 of 97 21 #77 of 97 88 #13 of 97
Shareholder Returns 47 #30 of 56 – 67 #19 of 56
Overall 43 67 78
  • CHE ranked among 102 companies in Healthcare Providers
  • AVAH ranked among 102 companies in Healthcare Providers
  • NHC ranked among 102 companies in Healthcare Providers

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodCHEAVAHNHCSPY
1 month -0.6%+2.3%-6.1% -0.2%
3 months -1.6%+28.4%-7.8% +3.9%
6 months +20.7%+89.6%+21.8% +8.2%
Year to date +18.8%+55.4%+55.2% +12.9%
1 year +16.4%+31.9%+76.8% +12.3%
3 years -10.0%+958.3%+221.9% +87.4%
3 years, per year -3.4%+119.7%+47.7% +23.3%
5 years +13.7%+66.0%+211.4% +67.9%
5 years, per year +2.6%+10.7%+25.5% +10.9%
10 years +266.9%—+228.6% +261.1%
10 years, per year +13.9%—+12.6% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureCHEAVAHNHCSPY
Volatility, 1Y 29.8%47.7%34.7% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 33.2%43.2%32.3% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.000.630.13 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.550.672.21 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -43.4%-92.3%-34.4% -25.4%
From 52-week high -8.0%-11.7%-14.0% -1.2%
52-week high $552.43$14.38$247.31 $779.14
52-week low $368.59$6.22$119.44 $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.

MultipleCHEAVAHNHC
P/E now vs peer median 23.7xmedian 24.6x 10.6xmedian 24.6x 23.7xmedian 24.6x
P/S now vs peer median 2.5xmedian 1.6x 1.1xmedian 1.6x 2.1xmedian 1.6x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median —median 14.6x 13.3xmedian 14.6x 16.4xmedian 14.6x
P/FCF now vs peer median 20.7xmedian 21.6x —median 21.6x 22.7xmedian 21.6x
P/B now vs peer median 7.7xmedian 3.2x 9.6xmedian 3.2x 3.0xmedian 3.2x
PEG now vs peer median 2.38median 0.66 0.24median 0.66 0.38median 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 monthsCHEAVAHNHC
Revenue $2.66B $2.54B $1.56B
Gross profit – $845.45M –
Operating income $370.86M $284.64M $144.68M
Net income $282.40M $260.11M $142.84M
Free cash flow – – $146.53M
EPS (diluted) $21.40 $1.16 $8.84
Cash & equivalents $48.43M $97.20M $39.21M
Total debt – $1.30B –
Shares (diluted) 13.20M 224.86M 15.86M
Enterprise value $7.30B $2.30B $2.32B

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
MetricCHEAVAHNHC
P/E 23.7x 10.6x 23.7x
P/FCF 20.7x – 22.7x
P/Operating cash flow 18.3x – 17.7x
P/S 2.5x 1.1x 2.1x
P/B 7.7x 9.6x 3.0x
P/Tangible book 8.5x 14.8x 3.0x
EV/EBITDA – 13.3x 16.4x
EV/EBIT – 14.0x 21.6x
EV/Revenue 2.5x 1.6x 2.0x
EV/FCF – – 21.3x
EV/Operating cash flow 18.3x – 16.5x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 2.38 0.24 0.38

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCHEAVAHNHC
Revenue growth (1Y) 5.2% 16.8% 6.9%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 6.1% 11.6% 12.8%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – 16.5% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – 14.5% –
Operating income growth (1Y) 5.5% 34.5% 24.1%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 6.1% 58.3% 57.4%
Net income growth (1Y) 1.3% 1,302% 35.9%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 4.9% 47.1% 68.9%
EPS growth (1Y) 10.6% 1,212% 31.6%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 10.0% 44.2% 61.9%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -13.5% – 26.7%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 4.1% – 44.1%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) – – 23.2%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) – – 58.0%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCHEAVAHNHC
Gross margin – 33.2% –
EBITDA margin – 11.8% 12.2%
Operating margin – 11.2% 9.3%
Pretax margin – 6.0% 11.9%
Net margin – 10.2% 9.0%
FCF margin – – 9.4%
Operating cash flow margin 13.6% – 12.1%
Return on equity – 108.0% 12.8%
Return on assets – 12.6% 9.3%
Return on invested capital – 18.4% 10.0%
Return on capital employed – 17.3% 11.2%
Asset turnover 1.6x 1.2x 1.0x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.3x – 1.3x
Stock comp / revenue 1.2% – 0.3%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCHEAVAHNHC
Debt / assets – 61.6% –
Debt / equity – 4.5x –
Net debt / EBITDA – 4.0x –
Debt / FCF – – –
Liabilities / assets 49.9% 86.4% 26.6%
Equity / assets 50.1% 13.6% 73.4%
Interest coverage – 2.2x 56.6x
Current ratio 1.1x 1.2x 1.9x
Quick ratio – 1.1x 1.5x
Cash ratio – 0.2x 0.9x
Altman Z-score – 1.89 7.18

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCHEAVAHNHC
Dividend yield 0.5% – 1.2%
Net buyback yield – – 0.1%
Shareholder yield 0.5% – 1.4%
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.

ConsensusCHEAVAHNHC
Forward P/E 19.2xFY2026 14.9xFY2026 –
EPS, next fiscal year $26.52FY2026 $0.85FY2026 –
EPS growth, next FY +23.1%FY2026 +41.7%FY2026 –
EPS growth, the year after +8.0% +11.8% –
Revenue, next fiscal year $2.66BFY2026 $2.76BFY2026 –
Revenue growth, next FY +5.1%FY2026 +13.4%FY2026 –
Revenue growth, the year after +15.2% +8.7% –

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCHEAVAHNHC
Held by institutions 100.0% 92.5% 65.3%
Institutions holding 527 215 250
Change in shares held, QoQ +2.8% +1.8% -0.6%
Institutions buying 276 151 136
Institutions selling 186 52 72
Buyers to sellers 1.48 2.90 1.89

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.

CHEAVAHNHC
CHE 1.00 0.17 0.24
AVAH 0.17 1.00 0.21
NHC 0.24 0.21 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, CHE, AVAH and NHC?

Chemed (CHE) is the largest by market capitalisation: Chemed (CHE) $7.30B, Aveanna Healthcare Holdings (AVAH) $2.84B, National Healthcare (NHC) $3.34B.

Which stock is cheaper, CHE, AVAH and NHC?

Aveanna Healthcare Holdings (AVAH) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Chemed (CHE) 25.9x, Aveanna Healthcare Holdings (AVAH) 10.9x, National Healthcare (NHC) 23.8x). On next year's consensus earnings, Aveanna Healthcare Holdings (AVAH) is cheapest (Chemed (CHE) 19.2x, Aveanna Healthcare Holdings (AVAH) 14.9x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Aveanna Healthcare Holdings (AVAH) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Chemed (CHE) +5.2%, Aveanna Healthcare Holdings (AVAH) +16.8%, National Healthcare (NHC) +6.9%.

Which company is more profitable?

Aveanna Healthcare Holdings (AVAH) has the highest net margin (Aveanna Healthcare Holdings (AVAH) 10.2%, National Healthcare (NHC) 9.0%). On return on invested capital, Aveanna Healthcare Holdings (AVAH) leads (Aveanna Healthcare Holdings (AVAH) 18.4%, National Healthcare (NHC) 10.0%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year National Healthcare (NHC) returned the most: Chemed (CHE) +16.4%, Aveanna Healthcare Holdings (AVAH) +31.9%, National Healthcare (NHC) +76.8%. Over five years, National Healthcare (NHC) compounded fastest (Chemed (CHE) +2.6%/yr, Aveanna Healthcare Holdings (AVAH) +10.7%/yr, National Healthcare (NHC) +25.5%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Chemed (CHE) 0.00%, Aveanna Healthcare Holdings (AVAH) 0.00%, National Healthcare (NHC) 0.01%. Chemed (CHE) and Aveanna Healthcare Holdings (AVAH) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Chemed (CHE) has been the steadiest (Chemed (CHE) 29.8%, Aveanna Healthcare Holdings (AVAH) 47.7%, National Healthcare (NHC) 34.7%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, CHE, AVAH and NHC?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Aveanna Healthcare Holdings (AVAH) leads on 5. 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.