NHC vs ENSG vs SNDA Stock Comparison

National Healthcare, Ensign and Sonida Senior Living Prices as of Nov 3, 2026 Peers: Industry group
NHC National Healthcare Corp
$205.49 -9.8% 1M +69.8% 1Y
Market cap
$3.32B
P/E
23.7x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.56B
Div. yield
0.01%
Home Health and Senior Care Healthcare
5 wins
ENSG Ensign Group, Inc
$182.21 +6.1% 1M -0.9% 1Y
Market cap
$10.92B
P/E
27.3x
Revenue (TTM)
$5.67B
Div. yield
–
Home Health and Senior Care Healthcare
4 wins

Head to Head

10 decided of 12

National Healthcare leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (National Healthcare 5, Ensign 4, Sonida Senior Living 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionNHCENSGSNDALeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $3.32B $10.92B $1.74B ENSG
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 23.7x 27.3x -12.0x NHC
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS — 22.0x — –
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +6.9% +17.5% +49.4% SNDA
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 9.0% 7.0% -27.6% NHC
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 10.0% 14.3% -2.7% ENSG
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — -0.3x 52.8x ENSG
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.01% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +69.8% -0.9% +32.9% NHC
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +23.7%/yr +18.7%/yr +4.0%/yr NHC
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 34.8% 29.4% 37.5% ENSG
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 78/100 64/100 18/100 NHC

Percentile Scorecard

NHCENSGSNDA

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

AxisNHCENSGSNDA
Valuation 78 #22 of 95 68 #31 of 95 26 #71 of 95
Growth 78 #20 of 88 61 #35 of 88 17 #73 of 88
Profitability 79 #19 of 87 73 #24 of 87 24 #66 of 87
Financial Health 85 #16 of 100 74 #27 of 100 16 #84 of 100
Shareholder Returns 68 #19 of 58 44 #33 of 58 5 #55 of 58
Overall 78 64 18
  • NHC ranked among 102 companies in Healthcare Providers
  • ENSG ranked among 102 companies in Healthcare Providers
  • SNDA ranked among 102 companies in Healthcare Providers

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodNHCENSGSNDASPY
1 month -9.8%+6.1%-9.8% -2.0%
3 months -1.3%+3.5%-11.8% -2.2%
6 months +23.0%+3.6%-8.6% +4.2%
Year to date +49.9%+4.6%+4.4% +10.6%
1 year +69.8%-0.9%+32.9% +10.4%
3 years +189.7%+78.6%+278.4% +73.6%
3 years, per year +42.6%+21.4%+55.9% +20.2%
5 years +189.1%+135.5%+21.6% +61.6%
5 years, per year +23.7%+18.7%+4.0% +10.1%
10 years +224.1%+952.6%-82.4% +261.3%
10 years, per year +12.5%+26.5%-16.0% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureNHCENSGSNDASPY
Volatility, 1Y 34.8%29.4%37.5% 12.8%
Downside volatility, 1Y 32.4%25.2%35.0% 12.8%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.18-0.030.30 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 2.00-0.030.88 0.81
Max drawdown, 5Y -34.4%-31.8%-82.1% -25.4%
From 52-week high -16.9%-15.6%-21.1% -3.2%
52-week high $247.31$215.83$43.17 $779.14
52-week low $121.04$147.13$25.62 $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.

MultipleNHCENSGSNDA
P/E now vs peer median 22.9xmedian 24.9x 26.4xmedian 24.9x -11.0xmedian 24.9x
P/S now vs peer median 2.1xmedian 1.6x 1.9xmedian 1.6x 3.1xmedian 1.6x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 15.8xmedian 15.2x 16.5xmedian 15.2x 108.7xmedian 15.2x
P/FCF now vs peer median 22.0xmedian 20.7x 20.9xmedian 20.7x -23.6xmedian 20.7x
P/B now vs peer median 2.9xmedian 3.2x 4.1xmedian 3.2x 1.9xmedian 3.2x
PEG now vs peer median 0.37median 0.72 1.67median 0.72 -1.22median 0.72

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 monthsNHCENSGSNDA
Revenue $1.56B $5.67B $525.97M
Gross profit – $1.20B –
Operating income $144.68M $509.16M –
Net income $142.84M $399.32M -$123.67M
Free cash flow $146.53M $509.91M -$68.36M
EPS (diluted) $8.84 $6.73 $-3.11
Cash & equivalents $39.21M $337.59M $48.71M
Total debt – $198.72M $1.57B
Shares (diluted) 15.86M 59.30M 46.81M
Enterprise value $2.30B $9.04B $1.58B

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
MetricNHCENSGSNDA
P/E 22.9x 26.4x -11.0x
P/FCF 22.0x 20.9x -23.6x
P/Operating cash flow 17.0x 15.3x -103.7x
P/S 2.1x 1.9x 3.1x
P/B 2.9x 4.1x 1.9x
P/Tangible book 2.9x 4.2x 2.4x
EV/EBITDA 15.8x 16.5x 108.7x
EV/EBIT 20.8x 20.5x -46.3x
EV/Revenue 1.9x 1.8x 6.0x
EV/FCF 20.5x 20.5x -45.9x
EV/Operating cash flow 15.9x 15.0x -201.6x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.37 1.67 -1.22

Growth

14 metrics
MetricNHCENSGSNDA
Revenue growth (1Y) 6.9% 17.5% 49.4%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 12.8% 16.8% 29.0%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – 21.7% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – 16.3% –
Operating income growth (1Y) 24.1% 26.6% –
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 57.4% 18.3% –
Net income growth (1Y) 35.9% 21.6% -243.6%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 68.9% 17.2% -88.8%
EPS growth (1Y) 31.6% 20.9% -44.1%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 61.9% 15.9% 9.0%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 26.7% 44.5% -223.5%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 44.1% 26.8% -72.1%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 23.2% 76.1% 66.2%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 58.0% 29.2% -58.8%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricNHCENSGSNDA
Gross margin – 21.2% –
EBITDA margin 12.2% 11.1% 5.5%
Operating margin 9.3% 9.0% –
Pretax margin 11.9% 9.4% -23.4%
Net margin 9.0% 7.0% -27.6%
FCF margin 9.4% 9.0% -13.0%
Operating cash flow margin 12.1% 12.3% -3.0%
Return on equity 12.8% 16.0% -14.1%
Return on assets 9.3% 6.8% -4.8%
Return on invested capital 10.0% 14.3% -2.7%
Return on capital employed 11.2% 10.4% -2.7%
Asset turnover 1.0x 1.0x 0.2x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.3x 1.7x 0.1x
Stock comp / revenue 0.3% 1.1% 1.4%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricNHCENSGSNDA
Debt / assets – 3.3% 61.7%
Debt / equity – 0.1x 1.8x
Net debt / EBITDA – -0.3x 52.8x
Debt / FCF – 0.4x -23.0x
Liabilities / assets 26.6% 57.3% 66.0%
Equity / assets 73.4% 42.7% 34.0%
Interest coverage 56.6x 62.8x -1.2x
Current ratio 1.9x 1.2x 0.9x
Quick ratio 1.5x 1.1x 0.6x
Cash ratio 0.9x 0.4x 0.4x
Altman Z-score 7.02 3.60 0.38

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricNHCENSGSNDA
Dividend yield 1.3% 0.2% –
Net buyback yield 0.1% 0.2% -6.7%
Shareholder yield 1.4% 0.3% -6.7%
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.

ConsensusNHCENSGSNDA
Forward P/E – 22.0xFY2026 –
EPS, next fiscal year – $8.29FY2026 $-3.72FY2026
EPS growth, next FY – +26.2%FY2026 –
EPS growth, the year after – -1.8% –
Revenue, next fiscal year – $5.76BFY2026 $682.14MFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY – +13.9%FY2026 +79.0%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after – +16.9% +17.9%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersNHCENSGSNDA
Held by institutions 65.3% 89.8% 79.1%
Institutions holding 250 549 230
Change in shares held, QoQ -0.6% -1.2% +44.5%
Institutions buying 136 250 132
Institutions selling 72 215 55
Buyers to sellers 1.89 1.16 2.40

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.

NHCENSGSNDA
NHC 1.00 0.33 0.34
ENSG 0.33 1.00 0.28
SNDA 0.34 0.28 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, NHC, ENSG and SNDA?

Ensign (ENSG) is the largest by market capitalisation: National Healthcare (NHC) $3.32B, Ensign (ENSG) $10.92B, Sonida Senior Living (SNDA) $1.74B.

Which stock is cheaper, NHC, ENSG and SNDA?

National Healthcare (NHC) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (National Healthcare (NHC) 23.7x, Ensign (ENSG) 27.3x, Sonida Senior Living (SNDA) -12.0x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Sonida Senior Living (SNDA) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: National Healthcare (NHC) +6.9%, Ensign (ENSG) +17.5%, Sonida Senior Living (SNDA) +49.4%.

Which company is more profitable?

National Healthcare (NHC) has the highest net margin (National Healthcare (NHC) 9.0%, Ensign (ENSG) 7.0%, Sonida Senior Living (SNDA) -27.6%). On return on invested capital, Ensign (ENSG) leads (National Healthcare (NHC) 10.0%, Ensign (ENSG) 14.3%, Sonida Senior Living (SNDA) -2.7%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year National Healthcare (NHC) returned the most: National Healthcare (NHC) +69.8%, Ensign (ENSG) -0.9%, Sonida Senior Living (SNDA) +32.9%. Over five years, National Healthcare (NHC) compounded fastest (National Healthcare (NHC) +23.7%/yr, Ensign (ENSG) +18.7%/yr, Sonida Senior Living (SNDA) +4.0%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: National Healthcare (NHC) 0.01%, Ensign (ENSG) 0.00%, Sonida Senior Living (SNDA) 0.00%. Ensign (ENSG) and Sonida Senior Living (SNDA) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Ensign (ENSG) has been the steadiest (National Healthcare (NHC) 34.8%, Ensign (ENSG) 29.4%, Sonida Senior Living (SNDA) 37.5%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, NHC, ENSG and SNDA?

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 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.