Ardent Health (NYSE:ARDT) Rating Lowered to Strong Sell at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research downgraded Ardent Health to “strong sell” from “hold,” despite UBS, Truist Financial and Guggenheim maintaining “buy” ratings. Across 14 analysts, the stock carries an average “hold” rating and a $12.95 price target.
• Ardent Health shares opened at $11.57, while the company recently reported quarterly EPS of $0.12, missing the $0.18 consensus estimate, though revenue of $1.62 billion exceeded expectations.
• Insider and institutional activity was positive: CFO Alfred Lumsdaine bought 10,000 shares, while BlackRock and other institutions established new positions during the second quarter.

Ardent Health (NYSE:ARDT - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report issued on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the company. UBS Group lifted their target price on Ardent Health from $13.00 to $13.50 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Truist Financial upped their price target on Ardent Health from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $13.00 price objective on shares of Ardent Health in a research note on Thursday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Ardent Health in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price objective on Ardent Health from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ardent Health currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $12.95.

Ardent Health Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of Ardent Health stock opened at $11.57 on Thursday. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $9.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $9.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.66 billion, a PE ratio of 21.04, a P/E/G ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.70. Ardent Health has a 1-year low of $7.71 and a 1-year high of $15.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 2.12 and a quick ratio of 2.00.

Ardent Health (NYSE:ARDT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported $0.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.18 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $1.62 billion for 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 10.45%. Ardent Health has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.780-1.150 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Ardent Health will post 0.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Alfred Lumsdaine acquired 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $8.81 per share, with a total value of $88,100.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer directly owned 329,183 shares in the company, valued at $2,900,102.23. This trade represents a 3.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Ardent Health

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ardent Health in the 2nd quarter valued at about $21,415,000. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new position in shares of Ardent Health during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $226,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in Ardent Health during the second quarter valued at approximately $2,377,000. State of Wyoming purchased a new stake in Ardent Health during the second quarter valued at approximately $218,000. Finally, Walleye Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Ardent Health in the second quarter valued at approximately $891,000.

Ardent Health Company Profile

Ardent Health, listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker ARDT, is a healthcare delivery company focused on acquiring, developing and managing acute care hospitals and complementary outpatient facilities across the United States. The company's integrated platform encompasses both inpatient and outpatient services, designed to provide end-to-end care solutions and address the full continuum of patient needs.

Through its network, Ardent Health operates general hospitals, emergency departments, ambulatory surgery centers, urgent care clinics, rehabilitation and post-acute care facilities.

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