Acadia Healthcare has been one of 2026’s stronger health care stocks. Shares were up 100% for the year as of September 22, according to Zacks Equity Research. Its industry gained 11.1%, and the S&P 500 rose 13.2%.
Zacks lined up Acadia, the behavioral health company founded and chaired by Reeve B. Waud, against several health care peers in two September reports. Acadia’s run followed a 2025 slump, Zacks noted. It picked up after management raised its 2026 adjusted EBITDA and earnings outlook following first- and second-quarter results.
Price and Valuation
Over the past 12 months, Acadia shares gained 28.8%, versus 14.2% for the industry. The run has lifted the valuation. Acadia traded at 16.55 times forward earnings; the industry average was 11.
Zacks gave Acadia a Rank #3 (Hold) and a Value Score of C. Tenet Healthcare, UnitedHealth Group and The Ensign Group each carried a Rank #2 (Buy).
Growth Forecasts
Zacks projected double-digit 2026 earnings growth for the peers it highlighted: 25.4% at Tenet, 21.4% at UnitedHealth and 18.6% at Ensign. Acadia’s 2026 consensus is $1.55 a share, with 14.4% growth expected in 2027.
Tenet drew nine upward estimate revisions in 60 days; Acadia drew four. Zacks put Ensign’s 2026 revenue consensus at $5.88 billion, up 16.3%, and UnitedHealth’s at $446.78 billion.
Operations tell their own story. Universal Health Services grew behavioral health revenue 7.4% in the second quarter. Ensign raised same-facility occupancy to 84.1%. Acadia’s acute inpatient volume rose 5.5%, and two new joint venture hospitals added 240 licensed beds.
Earnings Surprises
Acadia has beaten earnings estimates in each of its past four quarters by an average of 47%, the biggest surprise figure in the Zacks group. Tenet averaged 22.7%, UnitedHealth 12.1% and Ensign 4.3%, so Acadia led the group by a wide margin.
Acadia also lowered its 2026 capital spending guidance to $235 million to $255 million, and Zacks reported $113 million in debt reduction in the second quarter. Revenue is forecast at $3.42 billion in 2026 and $3.61 billion in 2027, gains of 3.4% and 5.4%. That 2026 figure falls inside the company’s own guidance of $3.40 billion to $3.45 billion. Zacks put Acadia’s second-quarter free cash flow at $124 million.
Reeve B. Waud chairs the board and leads Waud Capital Partners, the private equity firm he founded in 1993. Results from the company Reeve B. Waud built arrive after the market closes on November 4, with an analyst call the next morning.
