Tenet Healthcare Corporation (NYSE:THC) shares are down on Thursday as the company reported mixed first-quarter results.
Tenet Healthcare Q1 Results: Earnings Rise
The hospitals and healthcare facilities operator reported adjusted earnings of $4.82 per share, surpassing the consensus of $4.18. Sales reached $5.37 billion, missing the consensus of $5.39 billion.
Adjusted EBITDA was $1.162 billion compared to $1.163 billion a year ago, reflecting strong growth in same facility revenue and disciplined expense management offset by unfavorable payer mix due to lower exchange admissions.
Hospital Segment Growth Limited By Payer Mix Headwinds
Ambulatory Care Segment net operating revenues increased 10.6% to $1.32 billion, driven by strong growth in consolidated same-facility net patient service revenues, acquisitions of facilities, and increased service lines.
Surgical business same-facility system-wide net patient service revenues increased 5.3%, with cases down 0.3% and net revenue per case up 5.6%. Net revenue per case growth was driven by higher acuity and a favorable service mix.
Tenet's Hospital business segment sales reached $4.05 billion, up 0.5% due to an increase in adjusted admissions offset by unfavorable payer mix due to lower exchange admissions.
For the three months ending March 31, 2026, operating cash flow reached $1.641 billion, up from $815 million in the same period of 2025, while adjusted free cash flow increased to $978 million from $678 million.
FY26 Outlook Hiked
Tenet Healthcare raised its fiscal 2026 adjusted earnings guidance from $16.19-$18.47 to $16.38-$18.68 per share, compared to the consensus of $17.21.
The company reaffirmed 2026 sales guidance of $21.5 billion-$22.3 billion compared to the consensus of $22.02 billion.
Management Flags External Pressures On Operations
In an investor call on Thursday, the company said, "As anticipated towards the end of last year, the operating environment is dynamic. There are payer mix shifts, seasonal effects, and insurance enrollment uncertainty in the exchanges and Medicaid that impact demand."
The company also added, "Our operations in the first quarter were somewhat impacted by two major winter storms and uncertainty from vendor cyber attacks."
THC Technical Analysis: Trend, RSI And Key Support Levels
Tenet Healthcare is currently trading within its 52-week range, which has seen a high of $247.21 and a low of $126.75. The stock is trading 7.4% below its 20-day simple moving average (SMA) and 15.7% below its 50-day SMA, indicating a bearish short-term trend as it struggles to regain upward momentum.
The relative strength index (RSI) is at 37.34, suggesting that the stock is neither overbought nor oversold, but it does lean toward a bearish sentiment. The moving average convergence divergence (MACD) is below the signal line, indicating a bearish trend, which may be contributing to the current price action.
- Key Resistance: $206.50 — A level where the stock has previously struggled to maintain upward momentum.
- Key Support: $158.50 — A critical level that could provide a floor for the stock if tested.
THC Stock Price Activity: Tenet Healthcare shares were down 5.95% at $169.38 at the time of publication on Thursday, according to Benzinga Pro data.
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