Acadia Healthcare (NASDAQ:ACHC) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Acadia Healthcare Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACHC)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $24.42, but opened at $25.51. Acadia Healthcare shares last traded at $25.43, with a volume of 249,287 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Acadia Healthcare from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $30.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Acadia Healthcare from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Barclays boosted their target price on Acadia Healthcare from $20.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price target on Acadia Healthcare from $20.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Guggenheim increased their price objective on Acadia Healthcare from $26.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $26.85.

Acadia Healthcare Stock Up 4.8%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.71 and a quick ratio of 1.71. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $25.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $19.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.84 and a beta of 0.69.

Acadia Healthcare (NASDAQ:ACHC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $828.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $823.51 million. Acadia Healthcare had a positive return on equity of 7.09% and a negative net margin of 32.84%.The business’s revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.40 earnings per share. Acadia Healthcare has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.300-0.400 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Acadia Healthcare Company, Inc. will post 1.49 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. purchased a new position in Acadia Healthcare during the first quarter worth approximately $1,600,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Acadia Healthcare by 21.1% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 698,225 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,170,000 after purchasing an additional 121,444 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in shares of Acadia Healthcare by 8.7% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 340,916 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,337,000 after purchasing an additional 27,207 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Acadia Healthcare by 531.5% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 105,739 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,399,000 after buying an additional 88,995 shares during the period. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Acadia Healthcare by 21.9% in the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 9,903 shares of the company’s stock worth $225,000 after acquiring an additional 1,780 shares in the last quarter.

About Acadia Healthcare

Acadia Healthcare Company, Inc (NASDAQ: ACHC) is a publicly traded provider of behavioral healthcare services headquartered in Franklin, Tennessee. Founded in 2005, the company has grown through organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to establish itself as a leading specialist in mental health and addiction treatment across the United States.

Acadia operates a diversified network of inpatient psychiatric hospitals, residential treatment centers, outpatient clinics and intensive outpatient programs.