HCA vs NHC vs SGRY Stock Comparison

HCA Healthcare, National Healthcare and Surgery Partners Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
HCA HCA Healthcare, Inc.
$449.78 +3.2% 1M -3.9% 1Y
Market cap
$98.04B
P/E
14.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$78.70B
Div. yield
0.68%
Hospitals Healthcare
4 wins
NHC National Healthcare Corp
$212.79 -6.1% 1M +76.8% 1Y
Market cap
$3.33B
P/E
23.7x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.56B
Div. yield
1.23%
Home Health and Senior Care Healthcare
7 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

National Healthcare leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (National Healthcare 7, HCA Healthcare 4). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionHCANHCSGRYLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $98.04B $3.33B $3.06B HCA
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 14.6x 23.7x -34.0x HCA
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 14.9x — 58.4x HCA
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +5.8% +6.9% +4.0% NHC
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months — 9.0% -2.6% NHC
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — 10.0% 5.3% NHC
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — — 6.3x –
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.68% 1.23% — NHC
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -3.9% +76.8% +2.0% NHC
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +12.4%/yr +25.5%/yr -10.6%/yr NHC
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 31.1% 34.7% 66.8% HCA
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 61/100 78/100 56/100 NHC

Percentile Scorecard

HCANHCSGRY

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

AxisHCANHCSGRY
Valuation 88 #12 of 92 77 #22 of 92 84 #16 of 92
Growth 23 #67 of 87 79 #19 of 87 43 #50 of 87
Profitability 74 #23 of 86 80 #18 of 86 66 #30 of 86
Financial Health – 88 #13 of 97 30 #68 of 97
Shareholder Returns 58 #24 of 56 67 #19 of 56 –
Overall 61 78 56
  • HCA ranked among 102 companies in Healthcare Providers
  • NHC ranked among 102 companies in Healthcare Providers
  • SGRY ranked among 102 companies in Healthcare Providers

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodHCANHCSGRYSPY
1 month +3.2%-6.1%+62.2% -0.2%
3 months +7.5%-7.8%+49.9% +3.9%
6 months +4.1%+21.8%+62.8% +8.2%
Year to date -3.7%+55.2%+51.2% +12.9%
1 year -3.9%+76.8%+2.0% +12.3%
3 years +99.6%+221.9%+4.2% +87.4%
3 years, per year +25.9%+47.7%+1.4% +23.3%
5 years +79.4%+211.4%-42.9% +67.9%
5 years, per year +12.4%+25.5%-10.6% +10.9%
10 years +467.1%+228.6%+40.1% +261.1%
10 years, per year +19.0%+12.6%+3.4% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureHCANHCSGRYSPY
Volatility, 1Y 31.1%34.7%66.8% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 30.7%32.3%65.5% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.110.130.82 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.122.210.03 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -39.7%-34.4%-81.4% -25.4%
From 52-week high -17.5%-14.0%0.0% -1.2%
52-week high $545.13$247.31$23.36 $779.14
52-week low $361.32$119.44$11.49 $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.

MultipleHCANHCSGRY
P/E now vs peer median 14.6xmedian 24.6x 23.7xmedian 24.6x -34.0xmedian 24.6x
P/S now vs peer median 1.2xmedian 1.6x 2.1xmedian 1.6x 0.9xmedian 1.6x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median —median 14.6x 16.4xmedian 14.6x 11.8xmedian 14.6x
P/FCF now vs peer median 15.7xmedian 21.6x 22.7xmedian 21.6x 16.3xmedian 21.6x
P/B now vs peer median -12.1xmedian 3.2x 3.0xmedian 3.2x 1.0xmedian 3.2x
PEG now vs peer median 1.08median 0.66 0.38median 0.66 1.97median 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 monthsHCANHCSGRY
Revenue $78.70B $1.56B $3.37B
Operating income – $144.68M $383.80M
Net income $7.80B $142.84M $48.10M
Free cash flow – $146.53M $187.60M
EPS (diluted) $30.41 $8.84 $-0.69
Cash & equivalents $908.00M $39.21M $216.70M
Total debt – – $3.75B
Shares (diluted) 222.83M 15.86M 128.83M
Enterprise value $101.51B $2.32B $3.65B

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
MetricHCANHCSGRY
P/E 14.6x 23.7x -34.0x
P/FCF 15.7x 22.7x 16.3x
P/Operating cash flow 8.8x 17.7x 11.9x
P/S 1.2x 2.1x 0.9x
P/B -12.1x 3.0x 1.0x
P/Tangible book -12.1x 3.0x 1.0x
EV/EBITDA – 16.4x 11.8x
EV/EBIT – 21.6x 17.2x
EV/Revenue 1.2x 2.0x 2.0x
EV/FCF – 21.3x 35.1x
EV/Operating cash flow 8.8x 16.5x 25.6x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 1.08 0.38 1.97

Growth

14 metrics
MetricHCANHCSGRY
Revenue growth (1Y) 5.8% 6.9% 4.0%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 7.6% 12.8% 8.1%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – – –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – – –
Operating income growth (1Y) – 24.1% 6.1%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) – 57.4% 7.1%
Net income growth (1Y) 6.8% 35.9% 136.2%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 4.3% 68.9% 15.6%
EPS growth (1Y) 13.2% 31.6% 51.6%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 13.6% 61.9% -17.2%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -13.0% 26.7% -2.2%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 6.4% 44.1% 16.4%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) – 23.2% 7.0%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) – 58.0% 36.7%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricHCANHCSGRY
Gross margin – – –
EBITDA margin – 12.2% 16.7%
Operating margin – 9.3% 11.4%
Pretax margin – 11.9% 11.4%
Net margin – 9.0% -2.6%
FCF margin – 9.4% 5.6%
Operating cash flow margin 14.2% 12.1% 7.7%
Return on equity – 12.8% 2.6%
Return on assets – 9.3% 1.0%
Return on invested capital – 10.0% 5.3%
Return on capital employed – 11.2% 5.1%
Asset turnover – 1.0x 0.4x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.4x 1.3x 5.4x
Stock comp / revenue 0.5% 0.3% 0.3%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricHCANHCSGRY
Debt / assets – – 46.6%
Debt / equity – – 1.2x
Net debt / EBITDA – – 6.3x
Debt / FCF – – 20.0x
Liabilities / assets – 26.6% 61.5%
Equity / assets – 73.4% 38.5%
Interest coverage – 56.6x –
Current ratio – 1.9x 1.9x
Quick ratio – 1.5x 1.4x
Cash ratio – 0.9x 0.4x
Altman Z-score – 7.18 0.88

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricHCANHCSGRY
Dividend yield 0.7% 1.2% –
Net buyback yield – 0.1% –
Shareholder yield 0.7% 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.

ConsensusHCANHCSGRY
Forward P/E 14.9xFY2026 – 58.4xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $30.21FY2026 – $0.40FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +7.1%FY2026 – -14.9%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +11.0% – -5.0%
Revenue, next fiscal year $73.03BFY2026 – $3.38BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY -3.4%FY2026 – +2.2%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +18.8% – -2.9%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersHCANHCSGRY
Held by institutions 59.5% 65.3% 100.0%
Institutions holding 1,333 250 189
Change in shares held, QoQ +0.3% -0.6% -0.8%
Institutions buying 567 136 111
Institutions selling 563 72 50
Buyers to sellers 1.01 1.89 2.22

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.

HCANHCSGRY
HCA 1.00 0.26 0.25
NHC 0.26 1.00 0.00
SGRY 0.25 0.00 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, HCA, NHC and SGRY?

HCA Healthcare (HCA) is the largest by market capitalisation: HCA Healthcare (HCA) $98.04B, National Healthcare (NHC) $3.33B, Surgery Partners (SGRY) $3.06B.

Which stock is cheaper, HCA, NHC and SGRY?

HCA Healthcare (HCA) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (HCA Healthcare (HCA) 14.6x, National Healthcare (NHC) 23.7x, Surgery Partners (SGRY) -34.0x). On next year's consensus earnings, HCA Healthcare (HCA) is cheapest (HCA Healthcare (HCA) 14.9x, Surgery Partners (SGRY) 58.4x). 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: HCA Healthcare (HCA) +5.8%, National Healthcare (NHC) +6.9%, Surgery Partners (SGRY) +4.0%.

Which company is more profitable?

National Healthcare (NHC) has the highest net margin (National Healthcare (NHC) 9.0%, Surgery Partners (SGRY) -2.6%). On return on invested capital, National Healthcare (NHC) leads (National Healthcare (NHC) 10.0%, Surgery Partners (SGRY) 5.3%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year National Healthcare (NHC) returned the most: HCA Healthcare (HCA) -3.9%, National Healthcare (NHC) +76.8%, Surgery Partners (SGRY) +2.0%. Over five years, National Healthcare (NHC) compounded fastest (HCA Healthcare (HCA) +12.4%/yr, National Healthcare (NHC) +25.5%/yr, Surgery Partners (SGRY) -10.6%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

National Healthcare (NHC) has the highest dividend yield: HCA Healthcare (HCA) 0.68%, National Healthcare (NHC) 1.23%. Surgery Partners (SGRY) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, HCA Healthcare (HCA) has been the steadiest (HCA Healthcare (HCA) 31.1%, National Healthcare (NHC) 34.7%, Surgery Partners (SGRY) 66.8%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, HCA, NHC and SGRY?

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 7. 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.