New York, February 11, 2026, 14:35 EST — Regular session
Tenet Healthcare Corp surged roughly 16% Wednesday, with traders responding to fresh quarterly numbers and the company’s outlook for 2026. The shares climbed $31.0 to $224.03 by the afternoon, having ranged from $186.79 to $228.82 earlier in the session.
This update lands as hospital operators brace for a year where shifts in insurance coverage and government payments could quickly impact results. Traders are watching closely to see if the margin gains stick, especially as patient mix changes and wage costs no longer play along.
Tenet finds itself right at the intersection of those forces. The company operates acute-care hospitals, plus USPI, its sizable outpatient surgery arm. For investors, Tenet is basically a barometer for procedure volumes and shifts in payer mix—the balance among commercial insurers, government coverage, and self-paying patients.
Tenet reported net income available to common shareholders of $371 million for the fourth quarter, up from $318 million a year ago. That worked out to $4.22 per diluted share, with net operating revenues coming in at $5.527 billion. Adjusted EBITDA hit $1.183 billion, and adjusted diluted EPS reached $4.70, according to the company. Looking ahead, Tenet projected 2026 adjusted EBITDA in the range of $4.485 billion to $4.785 billion and expects adjusted EPS between $16.19 and $18.47. CEO Saum Sutaria pointed to “continued demand for acute care and ambulatory surgical services in our markets.” 1
CFO Sun Park, speaking on the earnings call, cautioned that “the expiration of the enhanced exchange tax credits will result in lower volume growth and a less favorable payer mix,” referencing subsidies that help reduce premiums for some Affordable Care Act plans. He estimated a hit of about $250 million to adjusted EBITDA in 2026, mainly hitting the hospital segment. In the fourth quarter, he noted, exchange plans represented about 7.5% of admissions and just over 6.5% of consolidated revenue. 2
Hospital names traded up. Shares of HCA Healthcare jumped roughly 5.9%, while Universal Health Services picked up about 8.6%. The Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund posted a gain of around 0.5%.
Still, Tenet’s 2026 guidance isn’t airtight. A sharper drop in exchange enrollment or unexpected cuts to supplemental Medicaid payments could saddle the company with a tougher patient mix and squeeze its margins further.
All eyes next turn to the quarter closing March 31. Investors will be watching for the first hints of exchange volumes, any tweaks in the company’s assumptions. After that, the focus likely moves to whether Tenet holds onto the upper range of its 2026 profit forecast.
