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ACHC vs UHS
Which Stock Would AI Choose? Acadia Healthcare (ACHC) vs. Universal Health Services (UHS) Stock Comparison
Key Takeaways
- Both ACHC and UHS delivered strong Q1 2026 results, with revenue growth of 7.6% and 9.6% year-over-year, respectively, alongside EPS beats.
- ACHC has surged 79% YTD amid recovery from 52-week lows, while UHS gained 23% YTD but dipped post-earnings.
- UHS trades at a lower trailing P/E ratio of about 7 compared to ACHC's 20, reflecting a more attractive valuation.
- UHS boasts a larger market cap of $10B versus ACHC's $2.3B, with stronger ROE (return on equity) at 21%.
- Both face sector risks like reimbursement pressures, but ACHC's higher debt-to-equity ratio (124%) signals elevated leverage.
Introduction
ACHC and UHS operate in the healthcare services sector, with significant exposure to behavioral health facilities amid rising demand for mental health and psychiatric care. This comparison is relevant for investors tracking hospital operators and medical facilities stocks, particularly those evaluating relative performance in a market influenced by quarterly earnings, reimbursement dynamics, and sector growth. Traders may find insights into momentum shifts and valuation trade-offs useful for position sizing in healthcare portfolios, while long-term holders can assess stability and growth potential in this essential services niche.
ACHC Overview and Recent Performance
Acadia Healthcare (ACHC) is a leading provider of behavioral healthcare services, operating a network of over 260 facilities focused on acute inpatient psychiatric care, residential treatment, and outpatient programs across the U.S. and Puerto Rico. In recent quarterly results, the company reported revenue of $828.8 million, up 7.6% year-over-year, driven by 7.3% same-facility growth from higher revenue per patient day and modest patient day increases. Earnings per share (EPS) of $0.37 beat consensus estimates, boosting sentiment despite a negative trailing twelve-month (TTM) EPS impacted by prior impairments. The stock has shown strong recovery momentum, up 79% year-to-date (YTD) from 52-week lows near $11, trading around $25-26 amid elevated volatility. Influences include robust demand for behavioral health services and analyst upgrades, though high debt levels temper optimism.
UHS Overview and Recent Performance
Universal Health Services (UHS) is one of the largest U.S. healthcare providers, managing over 400 facilities including acute care hospitals, behavioral health centers, and ambulatory surgery centers. Recent quarterly earnings highlighted revenue of $4.5 billion, a 9.6% increase, with adjusted EPS of $5.62 surpassing expectations, fueled by strong behavioral health admissions and outpatient expansion. Despite the beat, shares dipped about 9% in recent trading sessions due to concerns over reimbursement policies and operational outlook. YTD performance stands at 23%, with the stock around $167-171, reflecting resilience in a broader portfolio but pressure from acute care seasonality. Positive return on equity and volume growth support sentiment in recent market activity.
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Head-to-Head Comparison
ACHC focuses exclusively on behavioral health, offering specialized growth in a high-demand niche, while UHS provides diversified exposure through acute care hospitals alongside behavioral services, reducing single-segment risk. Growth drivers differ: ACHC benefits from patient day and pricing gains, versus UHS's outpatient and acquisition momentum. Recent momentum favors ACHC's YTD surge, but UHS shows steadier quarterly beats. Risk factors include ACHC's elevated debt-to-equity (124%) and negative TTM net income, contrasted with UHS's lower leverage (67%) and positive profitability. Market sentiment leans toward UHS for scale in the healthcare sector, though both navigate reimbursement headwinds.
Tickeron AI Verdict
Tickeron’s AI analysis currently favors UHS over ACHC, citing superior trend consistency, lower valuation multiples (P/E around 7), positive ROE, and broader diversification as relative strengths in the current environment. While ACHC exhibits stronger short-term momentum, UHS's scale and earnings stability position it probabilistically better for sustained performance amid healthcare sector dynamics.
Disclaimer
The information on this webpage is provided for general informational and educational purposes only and is not intended as investment advice, a recommendation to purchase or sell any security, or an offer or solicitation related to investments. It does not consider your personal financial situation, goals, or risk profile, and all investing carries inherent risks, including the possibility of losing your entire investment. For more details, please review our full disclaimer. Disclaimers and Limitations
To compare these two companies we present long-term analysis, their fundamental ratings and make comparative short-term technical analysis which are presented below. The conclusion is ACHC is a Hold and UHS is a Buy.
Long-Term Analysis
It is best to consider a long-term outlook for a ticker by using Fundamental Analysis (FA) ratings. The rating of 1 to 100, where 1 is best and 100 is worst, is divided into thirds. The first third (a green rating of 1-33) indicates that the ticker is undervalued; the second third (a grey number between 34 and 66) means that the ticker is valued fairly; and the last third (red number of 67 to 100) reflects that the ticker is undervalued. We use an FA Score to show how many ratings show the ticker to be undervalued (green) or overvalued (red).
ACHC’s FA Score shows that 1 FA rating(s) are green whileUHS’s FA Score has 1 green FA rating(s).
- ACHC’s FA Score: 1 green, 4 red.
- UHS’s FA Score: 1 green, 4 red.
Short-Term Analysis
It is best to consider a short-term outlook for a ticker by using Technical Analysis (TA) indicators. We use Odds of Success as the percentage of outcomes which confirm successful trade signals in the past.
If the Odds of Success (the likelihood of the continuation of a trend) for each indicator are greater than 50%, then the generated signal is confirmed. A green percentage from 90% to 51% indicates that the ticker is in a bullish trend. A red percentage from 90% - 51% indicates that the ticker is in a bearish trend. All grey percentages are below 50% and are considered not to confirm the trend signal.
ACHC’s TA Score shows that 5 TA indicator(s) are bullish while UHS’s TA Score has 5 bullish TA indicator(s).
- ACHC’s TA Score: 5 bullish, 3 bearish.
- UHS’s TA Score: 5 bullish, 3 bearish.
Price Growth
ACHC (@Hospital/Nursing Management) experienced а +0.84% price change this week, while UHS (@Hospital/Nursing Management) price change was -2.28% for the same time period.
The average weekly price growth across all stocks in the @Hospital/Nursing Management industry was -0.10%. For the same industry, the average monthly price growth was +4.78%, and the average quarterly price growth was +27.33%.
Reported Earning Dates
ACHC is expected to report earnings on Aug 04, 2026.
UHS is expected to report earnings on Jul 27, 2026.
Industries' Descriptions
@Hospital/Nursing Management (-0.10% weekly)Hospital/Nursing Management companies own and operate health care facilities. Their operations include nursing homes, acute care facilities, retirement centers and outpatient surgery centers. HCA Healthcare Inc., Alcon Inc. and Universal Health Services, Inc. are some major companies in this industry. Technology has been at the forefront of development of advanced solutions, including quicker diagnoses of complex conditions. Investments in new diagnostics, healthcare IoT, and other healthcare technologies continue to gather momentum in this industry.
| ACHC | UHS | ACHC / UHS | |
| Capitalization | 2.32B | 8.64B | 27% |
| EBITDA | -725.79M | 2.8B | -26% |
| Gain YTD | 77.590 | -34.421 | -225% |
| P/E Ratio | 20.21 | 5.96 | 339% |
| Revenue | 3.37B | 17.8B | 19% |
| Total Cash | 158M | N/A | - |
| Total Debt | 2.67B | 5.13B | 52% |
ACHC | UHS | ||
|---|---|---|---|
OUTLOOK RATING 1..100 | 17 | 2 | |
VALUATION overvalued / fair valued / undervalued 1..100 | 54 Fair valued | 11 Undervalued | |
PROFIT vs RISK RATING 1..100 | 100 | 100 | |
SMR RATING 1..100 | 99 | 44 | |
PRICE GROWTH RATING 1..100 | 43 | 65 | |
P/E GROWTH RATING 1..100 | 11 | 87 | |
SEASONALITY SCORE 1..100 | 50 | 50 |
Tickeron ratings are formulated such that a rating of 1 designates the most successful stocks in a given industry, while a rating of 100 points to the least successful stocks for that industry.
UHS's Valuation (11) in the Hospital Or Nursing Management industry is somewhat better than the same rating for ACHC (54) in the Medical Or Nursing Services industry. This means that UHS’s stock grew somewhat faster than ACHC’s over the last 12 months.
UHS's Profit vs Risk Rating (100) in the Hospital Or Nursing Management industry is in the same range as ACHC (100) in the Medical Or Nursing Services industry. This means that UHS’s stock grew similarly to ACHC’s over the last 12 months.
UHS's SMR Rating (44) in the Hospital Or Nursing Management industry is somewhat better than the same rating for ACHC (99) in the Medical Or Nursing Services industry. This means that UHS’s stock grew somewhat faster than ACHC’s over the last 12 months.
ACHC's Price Growth Rating (43) in the Medical Or Nursing Services industry is in the same range as UHS (65) in the Hospital Or Nursing Management industry. This means that ACHC’s stock grew similarly to UHS’s over the last 12 months.
ACHC's P/E Growth Rating (11) in the Medical Or Nursing Services industry is significantly better than the same rating for UHS (87) in the Hospital Or Nursing Management industry. This means that ACHC’s stock grew significantly faster than UHS’s over the last 12 months.
| ACHC | UHS | |
|---|---|---|
| RSI ODDS (%) | N/A | 2 days ago 62% |
| Stochastic ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 66% | 2 days ago 62% |
| Momentum ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 73% | 2 days ago 70% |
| MACD ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 65% | 2 days ago 62% |
| TrendWeek ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 65% | 2 days ago 70% |
| TrendMonth ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 60% | 2 days ago 73% |
| Advances ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 64% | 12 days ago 70% |
| Declines ODDS (%) | 19 days ago 69% | 6 days ago 69% |
| BollingerBands ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 60% | 2 days ago 65% |
| Aroon ODDS (%) | N/A | 2 days ago 69% |
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ACHC and
Correlation & Price change
A.I.dvisor indicates that over the last year, ACHC has been loosely correlated with UHS. These tickers have moved in lockstep 35% of the time. This A.I.-generated data suggests there is some statistical probability that if ACHC jumps, then UHS could also see price increases.
| Ticker / NAME | Correlation To ACHC | 1D Price Change % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ACHC | 100% | +1.33% | ||
| UHS - ACHC | 35% Loosely correlated | +1.04% | ||
| ASTH - ACHC | 31% Poorly correlated | +1.00% | ||
| THC - ACHC | 30% Poorly correlated | +3.58% | ||
| DVA - ACHC | 30% Poorly correlated | +0.85% | ||
| CON - ACHC | 29% Poorly correlated | -0.25% | ||
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UHS and
Correlation & Price change
A.I.dvisor indicates that over the last year, UHS has been loosely correlated with HCA. These tickers have moved in lockstep 62% of the time. This A.I.-generated data suggests there is some statistical probability that if UHS jumps, then HCA could also see price increases.
| Ticker / NAME | Correlation To UHS | 1D Price Change % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UHS | 100% | +1.04% | ||
| HCA - UHS | 62% Loosely correlated | +0.49% | ||
| THC - UHS | 56% Loosely correlated | +3.58% | ||
| PNTG - UHS | 40% Loosely correlated | +0.36% | ||
| ENSG - UHS | 39% Loosely correlated | +2.04% | ||
| CON - UHS | 35% Loosely correlated | -0.25% | ||
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