Leerink Partners Reaffirms Outperform Rating for Ardent Health (NYSE:ARDT)

Key Points

• Leerink Partners reaffirmed its “Outperform” rating on Ardent Health and maintained a $14 price target, implying approximately 32.75% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: seven analysts rate the stock a Buy, five a Hold and two a Sell, resulting in a consensus “Hold” rating and average price target of $12.95.
• Ardent Health’s latest quarter missed earnings expectations, reporting $0.12 per share versus $0.18 expected, while revenue of $1.62 billion exceeded estimates; shares recently traded at $10.55.

Ardent Health (NYSE:ARDT - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "outperform" rating reissued by equities researchers at Leerink Partners in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $14.00 target price on the stock. Leerink Partners' price objective suggests a potential upside of 32.75% from the stock's previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Ardent Health from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Zacks Research raised Ardent Health from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, September 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $13.00 price target on shares of Ardent Health in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on Ardent Health from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Ardent Health from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ardent Health has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $12.95.

Ardent Health Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ARDT traded down $0.15 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $10.55. 26,959 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 450,054. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 1.99 and a current ratio of 2.10. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $10.79 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $9.89. Ardent Health has a 12 month low of $7.71 and a 12 month high of $15.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.49 billion, a PE ratio of 19.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.71.

Ardent Health (NYSE:ARDT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported $0.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.18 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $1.62 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.59 billion. Ardent Health had a net margin of 1.22% and a return on equity of 10.35%. Ardent Health has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.780-1.150 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Ardent Health will post 0.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Ardent Health

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Ardent Health in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $21,415,000. Algert Global LLC boosted its position in Ardent Health by 1,277.3% in the 2nd quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 597,745 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,882,000 after buying an additional 554,345 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ardent Health in the 2nd quarter valued at $5,425,000. First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Ardent Health by 70.9% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 478,795 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,098,000 after buying an additional 198,595 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in shares of Ardent Health during the second quarter worth $3,840,000.

About Ardent Health

Ardent Health is a U.S. healthcare provider that owns and operates hospitals, outpatient facilities and other healthcare services. The company delivers a broad range of medical care, including emergency services, inpatient and outpatient treatment, primary care, specialty care, surgical services, behavioral health and urgent care.

Headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, Ardent serves communities through a network of hospitals and healthcare sites in several states, including Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico and Kansas.

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