Sifting through countless of stocks in the Health Care Providers & Services industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in Ardent Health, Inc. or Brookdale Senior Living Inc. because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.

Read on to learn how Ardent Health, Inc. and Brookdale Senior Living Inc. compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About Ardent Health, Inc. and Brookdale Senior Living Inc.

Ardent Health, Inc. owns and operates a network of hospitals and clinics that provides a range of healthcare services in the United States. The company offers general and specialty services, including internal medicine, general surgery, cardiology, oncology, orthopedics, women’s services, neurology, urology, and emergency services within inpatient and ambulatory care settings. It also operates a network of ambulatory facilities and telehealth services, including primary care and specialty care clinics, ambulatory surgery centers, urgent care centers, free-standing emergency departments, and diagnostic imaging centers. It operates acute care hospitals, including rehabilitation hospitals and surgical hospitals. Ardent Health, Inc. was formerly known as Ardent Health Partners, Inc. and changed its name to Ardent Health, Inc. in June 2025. The company was founded in 2001 and is based in Brentwood, Tennessee. Ardent Health, Inc. is a subsidiary of EGI-AM Investments, L.L.C.

Brookdale Senior Living Inc. owns, manages, and operates senior living communities in the United States. It operates in three segments: Independent Living, Assisted Living and Memory Care, and Continuing Care Retirement Communities (CCRCs). The Independent Living segment owns or leases communities comprising independent and assisted living units in a single community that are primarily designed for middle to upper income seniors. The Assisted Living and Memory Care segment owns or leases communities consisting of freestanding, multi-story communities and freestanding, single-story communities, which offer housing and 24-hour assistance with activities of daily living for the Company's residents. This segment operates memory care communities for residents with Alzheimer's and other dementias. The CCRCs segment owns or leases communities that provides various living arrangements, such as independent and assisted living, memory care, and skilled nursing; and services to accommodate various levels of physical ability and healthcare needs. It manages communities on behalf of others. The company was incorporated in 2005 and is headquartered in Brentwood, Tennessee.

Latest Health Care Providers & Services and Ardent Health, Inc., Brookdale Senior Living Inc. Stock News

As of December 9, 2025, Ardent Health, Inc. had a $1.2 billion market capitalization, compared to the Health Care Providers & Services median of $1.2 million. Ardent Health, Inc.’s stock is down 49.5% in 2025, down 3.5% in the previous five trading days and down 46.31% in the past year.

Currently, Ardent Health, Inc.’s price-earnings ratio is 5.9. Ardent Health, Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $6.3 billion with a 3.2% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 8.8%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $1.860 per share for the current fiscal year. Ardent Health, Inc. does not currently pay a dividend.

As of December 9, 2025, Brookdale Senior Living Inc. had a $2.5 billion market cap, putting it in the 59th percentile of all stocks. Brookdale Senior Living Inc.’s stock is up 109.6% in 2025, down 0.6% in the previous five trading days and up 88.93% in the past year.

Currently, Brookdale Senior Living Inc. does not have a price-earnings ratio. Brookdale Senior Living Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $3.1 billion with a -9.9% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 4.2%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $-1.130 per share for the current fiscal year. Brookdale Senior Living Inc. does not currently pay a dividend.

How We Compare Ardent Health, Inc. and Brookdale Senior Living Inc. Stock Grades

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at Ardent Health, Inc. and Brookdale Senior Living Inc.’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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Ardent Health, Inc. and Brookdale Senior Living Inc.’s Quality Grades

Company	Ticker	Quality
Ardent Health, Inc.	ARDT	B
Brookdale Senior Living Inc.	BKD	D

Like the Value Grade, AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the percentile rank of key metrics. Specifically, the Quality Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and the F-Score.

The score is variable, meaning it can consider all eight measures or, should any of the eight measures not be valid, the remaining measures that are valid. To be assigned a Quality Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) measure and corresponding ranking for at least four of the eight quality measures.

The Quality Score is used to assess the underlying “quality” of a particular stock. A higher-quality stock possesses traits associated with upside potential and reduced downside risk. Backtesting of the Quality Grade shows that stocks with higher grades, on average, outperformed stocks with lower grades over the period of 1998 through 2019.

Stocks receive better grades (higher scores) for having higher scores for the quality subcomponents and worse grades (lower scores) for lower scores for the subcomponents.

Ardent Health, Inc. has a Quality Score of 64, which is Strong. Brookdale Senior Living Inc. has a Quality Score of 25, which is Weak.

The Quality Grade Winner: Ardent Health, Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Quality Grade breakdown above, Ardent Health, Inc. has a better overall quality grade than Brookdale Senior Living Inc.. For investors who are looking for companies with higher quality than others in the same industry, Ardent Health, Inc. could be a good stock to add to their portfolios. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Ardent Health, Inc. and Brookdale Senior Living Inc.’s Momentum Grades

Company	Ticker	Momentum
Ardent Health, Inc.	ARDT	F
Brookdale Senior Living Inc.	BKD	A

Momentum grades help to uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming. Momentum is based on the price change of a stock over a specified period relative to all other stocks.

Typically, AAII looks at the weighted relative strength over the trailing four quarters. The weighted four-quarter relative strength rank is the relative price change for each of the past four quarters. The most recent quarterly price change is given a weight of 40% and each of the three previous quarters are given a weighting of 20%.

Ardent Health, Inc. has a Momentum Score of 9, which is Very Weak. Brookdale Senior Living Inc. has a Momentum Score of 90, which is Very Strong.

The Momentum Grade Winner: Brookdale Senior Living Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Momentum Grade breakdown above, Brookdale Senior Living Inc. is considered to have stronger momentum compared to Ardent Health, Inc.. For those specifically looking for companies that have stronger momentum compared to other companies in the same industry, Brookdale Senior Living Inc. could be a good stock to invest in. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Ardent Health, Inc. and Brookdale Senior Living Inc.’s Estimate Revisions Grades

Company	Ticker	Earnings Estimate
Ardent Health, Inc.	ARDT	C
Brookdale Senior Living Inc.	BKD	F

Earnings estimate revisions scores consider the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, positive surprises beget further positive surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).

Estimate revisions offer an indication of what analysts are thinking about the short-term prospects of a firm. Estimate revisions are based on the statistical significance of a firm’s last two quarterly earnings surprises and the percentage change in its consensus estimate for the current fiscal year over the past month and past three months.

Ardent Health, Inc. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 50, which is Neutral. Brookdale Senior Living Inc. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 12, which is Very Negative.

The Earnings Estimate Revisions Stock Winner: No Clear Winner

Neither Ardent Health, Inc. or Brookdale Senior Living Inc. has an Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade that could be considered a “winner.” Investors considering these companies should do additional due diligence and research to see if either could be a good addition to their portfolios. It’s important to look at a wide range of financial metrics in order to determine if Ardent Health, Inc. or Brookdale Senior Living Inc. is the better investment when it comes to estimate revisions.

Other Ardent Health, Inc. and Brookdale Senior Living Inc. Grades

In addition to Estimate Revisions, Momentum and Quality, A+ Investor also provides grades for Value and Growth.

Growth investing builds on the idea that stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth outperform those of slower-growth companies. AAII measures growth through consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations.

Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection. Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.

These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether Ardent Health, Inc. and Brookdale Senior Living Inc. pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, Ardent Health, Inc. or Brookdale Senior Living Inc. Stock?

Overall, Ardent Health, Inc. stock has a Momentum Score of 9, Estimate Revisions Score of 50 and Quality Score of 64.

Brookdale Senior Living Inc. stock has a Momentum Score of 90, Estimate Revisions Score of 12 and Quality Score of 25.

Comparing Ardent Health, Inc. and Brookdale Senior Living Inc.’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.

Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.

A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.