Ardent Health, Inc. (ARDT) stock analysis
Close on Nov 12, 2026Market cap $2.49BP/E 17.2Yield –
StockData Score
Prices as of Nov 11, 2026How the score works
Weak8 of 30 checks passed
Ardent Health passes 8 of the 30 checks behind our score; 12 could not be run for lack of data and count as not passed. Each dot in the shape is one check — hover it for the numbers.
- Valuation
- 4/6
- Growth
- 0/6
- Past performance
- 2/6
- Financial health
- 2/6
- Dividend
- 0/6
What stands out
Margin of safety over 20%
The price is 22.9% below fair value, more than the 20% cushion we look for.
Trading below fair value
The share price of $18.19 is below our fair value estimate of $23.60.
Debt covered by cash flow
Operating cash flow over the last twelve months equals 43.9% of total debt.
P/E below the industry
Ardent Health's P/E of 17.7 is below the Health Services median of 23.9.
What to watch
High debt
Debt is 78.7% of shareholders' equity, above the 40% we consider low.
Revenue growing under 10% a year
Revenue grew 7.2% a year over the last three fiscal years, short of the 10% we look for.
EPS growing under 10% a year
Diluted EPS grew -13.8% a year over the last three fiscal years.
Bankruptcy risk in the grey zone
The Altman Z-score is 2.05; above 3 is the safe zone and below 1.8 the distress zone.
Valuation4/6
P/E above its 5-year median
Ardent Health's P/E of 17.7 is above its own 5-year median of 9.7.
P/E below the industry
Ardent Health's P/E of 17.7 is below the Health Services median of 23.9.
EV/EBITDA above its 5-year median
Ardent Health's EV/EBITDA of 7.2 is above its 5-year median of 5.3.
P/B below the industry
Ardent Health's price-to-book of 1.84 is below the Health Services median of 3.52.
Trading below fair value
The share price of $18.19 is below our fair value estimate of $23.60.
Margin of safety over 20%
The price is 22.9% below fair value, more than the 20% cushion we look for.
Growth0/6
Revenue growing under 10% a year
Revenue grew 7.2% a year over the last three fiscal years, short of the 10% we look for.
EPS growing under 10% a year
Diluted EPS grew -13.8% a year over the last three fiscal years.
Earnings acceleration
Needs positive net income now, a year ago and five years ago.
Growing slower than the industry
Revenue grew 2.0% over the last twelve months; the Health Services median is 4.0%.
Guidance lowered
Ardent Health lowered its Full Year 2026 Diluted earnings per share outlook on Aug 4, 2026.
Gross margin trend
This company does not report gross profit.
Past performance2/6
Return on equity
Needs positive equity and five years of results.
Return on invested capital
Needs operating income and invested capital.
Return on equity above the industry
Ardent Health's return on equity of 11.1% is above the Health Services median of 4.6%.
Earnings over 5 years
Needs positive net income five years ago and in the latest year.
Net margin below its 5-year average
Net margin was 2.3% over the last twelve months, against a 5-year average of 2.6%.
Net margin above the industry
Ardent Health's net margin of 2.3% is above the Health Services median of -2.6%.
Financial health2/6
High debt
Debt is 78.7% of shareholders' equity, above the 40% we consider low.
Debt trend
Needs a balance sheet from five years ago with positive equity.
Debt covered by cash flow
Operating cash flow over the last twelve months equals 43.9% of total debt.
Interest coverage
Interest expense is not reported separately.
Short-term assets cover short-term debts
Current assets are 2.13 times current liabilities.
Bankruptcy risk in the grey zone
The Altman Z-score is 2.05; above 3 is the safe zone and below 1.8 the distress zone.
Dividend0/6
No dividend
Ardent Health has not paid a dividend in the last twelve months.
Yield against Treasuries
No dividend.
Yield against the market
No dividend.
Dividend stability
No dividend.
Earnings cover
No dividend.
Cash-flow cover
No dividend.
Fair value
How we estimate itOur estimate per share
$23.60
The share price is 23% below this estimate.
| Method | Multiple used | Own 5Y median | Industry median | Value per share | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P/E | 19.7× | 9.7× | 23.9× | $20.27 | 40% |
| EV/EBITDA | 7.6× | 5.3× | 8.6× | $22.32 | 35% |
| P/B | 2.9× | 1.3× | 3.5× | $28.38 | 10% |
| Earnings power | 7.4% cost of equity | – | – | $32.25 | 15% |
| Fair value | $23.60 | 100% | |||
Valuation over time
Using the earnings and balance sheet published at each date, not today's.
- P/E at month end
- Own 5-year median 9.7
- Health Services median 23.9
An estimate from reported numbers and market multiples, not a price target or investment advice. It can be far off for companies whose profits are about to change sharply.
Market risk
From the past year of daily prices.
Liquidity
Medium risk
- Average value traded per day
- $9.83M
- Value traded per 1% price move
- $2.75M
Downside
Medium risk
- Typical loss in a bad month
- 19.8%
- Volatility (annualized)
- 60%
- Sharpe ratio, 1 year
- 0.48
- Beta to the S&P 500 (5Y)
- 0.32
Typical bad-month loss, week by week
Margins
Share of revenue, fiscal years 2021 to 2025
Net margin
Growth rates
Compound annual growth to fiscal 2025
| Per year | 1 year | 3 years | 5 years | 10 years | Five-year pace |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | +6.0% | +7.2% | – | – | |
| Net income | -35.4% | -10.4% | – | – | |
| EPS, diluted | -39.2% | -13.8% | – | – |
Returns and balance sheet
5 fiscal years. Hover a measure to see how it is calculated.
| Measure | FY2021 | FY2021 | FY2025 | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return on equity | – | – | 11.2% | |
| Return on assets | – | – | 2.7% | |
| Current ratio | – | – | 1.97 | |
| Debt to equity | – | – | 0.85 | |
| Diluted shares | – | – | 141M |
Cash use needs five years of cash flow figures
Ardent Health does not report operating cash flow and capital expenditure for each of the last five fiscal years.
DuPont analysis
Return on equity split into margin, efficiency and leverage
| Fiscal year | Net margin | Asset turnover | Equity multiplier | Return on equity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | 2.1% | 1.23× | 4.24× | 11.2% |
| FY2024 | 3.5% | 1.23× | 5.38× | 23.3% |
Piotroski F-Score
Nine tests of profitability, balance sheet and efficiency, fiscal 2025 against fiscal 2024
- ProfitableNet income above zero$135.81M
- Cash generatingOperating cash flow above zero$470.51M
- Return on assets improvedROA up on the prior year4.4% → 2.7%
- Earnings backed by cashOperating cash flow above net income$470.51M vs $135.81M
- Less leverageLong-term debt to assets fell21.9% → 20.3%
- Better liquidityCurrent ratio rose1.94 → 1.97
- No dilutionShare count did not rise133M → 141M
- Gross margin improvedGross margin up on the prior year– → –
- More efficientAsset turnover rose1.26 → 1.28
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