EHC vs NHC vs CYH Stock Comparison

Encompass Health, National Healthcare and Community Health Systems Prices as of Oct 29, 2026 Peers: Industry group
EHC Encompass Health Corp
$131.59 +6.5% 1M +4.7% 1Y
Market cap
$13.39B
P/E
20.8x
Revenue (TTM)
$6.34B
Div. yield
0.01%
Hospitals Healthcare
3 wins
NHC National Healthcare Corp
$211.62 -5.6% 1M +75.1% 1Y
Market cap
$3.29B
P/E
23.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.56B
Div. yield
0.01%
Home Health and Senior Care Healthcare
6 wins

Head to Head

10 decided of 12

National Healthcare leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (National Healthcare 6, Encompass Health 3, Community Health Systems 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionEHCNHCCYHLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $13.39B $3.29B $317.17M EHC
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 20.8x 23.4x 4.6x CYH
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 22.2x — — –
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +9.4% +6.9% -7.8% EHC
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months — 9.0% 0.6% NHC
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — 10.0% 7.0% NHC
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — — 5.5x –
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.01% 0.01% 0.00% NHC
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +4.7% +75.1% -42.8% NHC
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +15.7%/yr +24.8%/yr -28.7%/yr NHC
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 30.4% 34.7% 51.1% EHC
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 61/100 79/100 47/100 NHC

Percentile Scorecard

EHCNHCCYH

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

AxisEHCNHCCYH
Valuation 71 #27 of 92 77 #22 of 92 90 #10 of 92
Growth 54 #41 of 87 79 #19 of 87 16 #73 of 87
Profitability 80 #18 of 86 84 #15 of 86 62 #33 of 86
Financial Health 42 #57 of 97 88 #13 of 97 20 #78 of 97
Shareholder Returns 57 #24 of 55 69 #18 of 55 –
Overall 61 79 47
  • EHC ranked among 102 companies in Healthcare Providers
  • NHC ranked among 102 companies in Healthcare Providers
  • CYH ranked among 102 companies in Healthcare Providers

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodEHCNHCCYHSPY
1 month +6.5%-5.6%-17.5% +0.7%
3 months +18.7%-7.5%-13.0% +3.7%
6 months +31.6%+22.1%-15.1% +7.1%
Year to date +24.0%+54.4%-22.8% +12.8%
1 year +4.7%+75.1%-42.8% +11.9%
3 years +117.0%+213.7%+14.8% +85.2%
3 years, per year +29.5%+46.4%+4.7% +22.8%
5 years +107.0%+202.6%-81.6% +67.6%
5 years, per year +15.7%+24.8%-28.7% +10.9%
10 years +231.7%+227.0%-53.9% +262.0%
10 years, per year +12.7%+12.6%-7.5% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureEHCNHCCYHSPY
Volatility, 1Y 30.4%34.7%51.1% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 25.1%32.3%56.9% 12.6%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.010.130.97 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.162.17-0.84 0.94
Max drawdown, 5Y -39.1%-34.4%-86.3% -25.4%
From 52-week high 0.0%-14.4%-42.8% -1.2%
52-week high $131.59$247.31$4.21 $779.14
52-week low $93.83$119.44$2.41 $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.

MultipleEHCNHCCYH
P/E now vs peer median 20.2xmedian 26.0x 23.6xmedian 26.0x 4.7xmedian 26.0x
P/S now vs peer median 2.0xmedian 1.6x 2.1xmedian 1.6x 0.0xmedian 1.6x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median —median 15.4x 16.3xmedian 15.4x 5.7xmedian 15.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median 29.5xmedian 21.5x 22.6xmedian 21.5x -2.8xmedian 21.5x
P/B now vs peer median 3.7xmedian 3.2x 2.9xmedian 3.2x -0.2xmedian 3.2x
PEG now vs peer median 0.89median 0.87 0.38median 0.87 -0.11median 0.87

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 monthsEHCNHCCYH
Revenue $6.34B $1.56B $11.65B
Gross profit – – $10.06B
Operating income – $144.68M $1.23B
Net income $862.30M $142.84M $189.00M
Free cash flow – $146.53M -$122.00M
EPS (diluted) $6.44 $8.84 $0.51
Cash & equivalents $76.20M $39.21M $155.00M
Total debt – – $9.59B
Shares (diluted) 100.00M 15.86M 135.54M
Enterprise value $13.39B $2.27B -$958.83M

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
MetricEHCNHCCYH
P/E 20.2x 23.6x 4.7x
P/FCF 29.5x 22.6x -2.8x
P/Operating cash flow 10.0x 17.6x 1.6x
P/S 2.0x 2.1x 0.0x
P/B 3.7x 2.9x -0.2x
P/Tangible book 4.1x 3.0x -0.2x
EV/EBITDA – 16.3x 5.7x
EV/EBIT – 21.5x 7.7x
EV/Revenue 2.0x 2.0x 0.8x
EV/FCF – 21.2x -80.1x
EV/Operating cash flow 10.0x 16.4x 46.3x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.89 0.38 -0.11

Growth

14 metrics
MetricEHCNHCCYH
Revenue growth (1Y) 9.4% 6.9% -7.8%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 10.5% 12.8% 66.5%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – – -5.7%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – – –
Operating income growth (1Y) – 24.1% 48.3%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) – 57.4% –
Net income growth (1Y) 19.7% 35.9% -61.3%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 23.2% 68.9% -20.5%
EPS growth (1Y) 21.9% 31.6% -81.2%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 22.7% 61.9% -42.2%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 17.6% 26.7% -57.2%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 16.6% 44.1% 17.8%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) – 23.2% -185.3%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) – 58.0% 30.2%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricEHCNHCCYH
Gross margin – – 86.3%
EBITDA margin – 12.2% 14.6%
Operating margin – 9.3% 10.5%
Pretax margin – 11.9% 3.5%
Net margin – 9.0% 0.6%
FCF margin – 9.4% -1.0%
Operating cash flow margin 20.6% 12.1% 1.8%
Return on equity 25.0% 12.8% –
Return on assets 11.5% 9.3% 1.6%
Return on invested capital – 10.0% 7.0%
Return on capital employed – 11.2% 12.5%
Asset turnover 0.8x 1.0x 1.0x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.5x 1.3x 1.1x
Stock comp / revenue 0.9% 0.3% 0.1%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricEHCNHCCYH
Debt / assets – – 79.2%
Debt / equity – – -6.4x
Net debt / EBITDA – – 5.5x
Debt / FCF – – -78.6x
Liabilities / assets 52.9% 26.6% 112.3%
Equity / assets 46.3% 73.4% -12.3%
Interest coverage – 56.6x 1.5x
Current ratio 1.1x 1.9x 1.5x
Quick ratio – 1.5x 1.1x
Cash ratio – 0.9x 0.1x
Altman Z-score – 7.16 1.00

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricEHCNHCCYH
Dividend yield 0.6% 1.2% –
Net buyback yield – 0.1% –
Shareholder yield 0.6% 1.4% 0.0%
Payout ratio (earnings) 8.9% 27.8% –
Payout ratio (FCF) – 27.1% –
Dividend growth (1Y) 11.3% 5.6% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 8.4% 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.

ConsensusEHCNHCCYH
Forward P/E 22.2xFY2026 – –
EPS, next fiscal year $5.94FY2026 – $-1.16FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +9.0%FY2026 – -197.5%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +7.1% – –
Revenue, next fiscal year $6.62BFY2026 – –
Revenue growth, next FY +11.5%FY2026 – –
Revenue growth, the year after +9.2% – –

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersEHCNHCCYH
Held by institutions 96.0% 65.3% 82.1%
Institutions holding 596 250 179
Change in shares held, QoQ -0.8% -0.6% +6.6%
Institutions buying 292 136 96
Institutions selling 217 72 52
Buyers to sellers 1.35 1.89 1.85

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.

EHCNHCCYH
EHC 1.00 0.27 0.22
NHC 0.27 1.00 0.12
CYH 0.22 0.12 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, EHC, NHC and CYH?

Encompass Health (EHC) is the largest by market capitalisation: Encompass Health (EHC) $13.39B, National Healthcare (NHC) $3.29B, Community Health Systems (CYH) $317.17M.

Which stock is cheaper, EHC, NHC and CYH?

Community Health Systems (CYH) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Encompass Health (EHC) 20.8x, National Healthcare (NHC) 23.4x, Community Health Systems (CYH) 4.6x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Encompass Health (EHC) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Encompass Health (EHC) +9.4%, National Healthcare (NHC) +6.9%, Community Health Systems (CYH) -7.8%.

Which company is more profitable?

National Healthcare (NHC) has the highest net margin (National Healthcare (NHC) 9.0%, Community Health Systems (CYH) 0.6%). On return on invested capital, National Healthcare (NHC) leads (National Healthcare (NHC) 10.0%, Community Health Systems (CYH) 7.0%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year National Healthcare (NHC) returned the most: Encompass Health (EHC) +4.7%, National Healthcare (NHC) +75.1%, Community Health Systems (CYH) -42.8%. Over five years, National Healthcare (NHC) compounded fastest (Encompass Health (EHC) +15.7%/yr, National Healthcare (NHC) +24.8%/yr, Community Health Systems (CYH) -28.7%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

National Healthcare (NHC) has the highest dividend yield: Encompass Health (EHC) 0.01%, National Healthcare (NHC) 0.01%, Community Health Systems (CYH) 0.00%. Community Health Systems (CYH) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Encompass Health (EHC) has been the steadiest (Encompass Health (EHC) 30.4%, National Healthcare (NHC) 34.7%, Community Health Systems (CYH) 51.1%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, EHC, NHC and CYH?

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