ENSG vs HCA: Ensign and HCA compared
The short version
From the latest prices and each company's SEC filings. Who's ahead on each measure, not which to buy.
- HCA is the larger company, worth $94.7B, about 9.4 times Ensign.
- Ensign grew revenue faster over the last year (+17.3% vs +4.3%).
- HCA keeps more of each dollar of revenue as operating profit (12.8% vs 8.6%).
- On earnings, HCA is the cheaper stock (14.7x vs 28.1x).
- Ensign's price assumes faster free cash flow growth: about 9% a year, against -1% for HCA (reverse DCF).
Side by side
The stronger figure is shaded where higher (or, for valuation multiples, lower) reads as better. How the implied growth works.
| Measure | ENSG | HCA |
|---|---|---|
| Market cap | $10.1B | $94.7B |
| Share price | $171.80 | $451.09 |
| Revenue (last fiscal year) | $5.0B | $75.6B |
| Free cash flow (last fiscal year) | $371M | $7.7B |
| Revenue growth, last year | +17.3% | +4.3% |
| Revenue growth per year, last 5 fiscal years | +17.6% | +6.5% |
| Operating margin | 8.6% | 12.8% |
| Net margin | 6.9% | 8.9% |
| Return on equity | 15.5% | — |
| P/E (trailing) | 28.1x | 14.7x |
| Price / free cash flow | 27.1x | 12.3x |
| EV / EBITDA | 18.6x | 9.60x |
| FCF growth the price implies | 9.0% | -1.4% |
| Dividend yield | 0.15% | 0.66% |
| Debt / equity | 1.35x | — |
| Fundamental grade | C | C |
| Superinvestors holding it | 4 | 12 |
| Insider purchases, last 12 months | 0 | 0 |
Results from SEC filings
Revenue and free cash flow by fiscal year, from each company's 10-K filings.
Ensign
| Year | Revenue | Free cash flow | Op. margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | $2.6B | $206M | 9.9% |
| 2022 | $3.0B | $185M | 9.8% |
| 2023 | $3.7B | $270M | 6.9% |
| 2024 | $4.2B | $189M | 8.5% |
| 2025 | $5.0B | $371M | 8.5% |
HCA
| Year | Revenue | Free cash flow | Op. margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | $58.8B | $5.4B | 16.7% |
| 2022 | $60.2B | $4.1B | 14.2% |
| 2023 | $65.0B | $4.7B | 11.9% |
| 2024 | $70.6B | $5.6B | 12.1% |
| 2025 | $75.6B | $7.7B | 13.0% |
Where the revenue comes from
Ensign · by segments, 2025
Skilled Services$4.8B97%
Standard Bearer$127M3%
HCA · by segments, 2023
American Group$22.3B34%
Atlantic Group$21.2B33%
National Group$18.1B28%
Corporate and Other$3.4B5%
Compare them in fullFifteen years of statements, quarterly results, DCF and IRR models, and any number of peers side by side.
Open ENSG in InvestinglyQuestions
Which is bigger, Ensign or HCA?
HCA (HCA), at $94.7B against $10.1B.
Is ENSG or HCA cheaper?
By trailing P/E, HCA (14.7x) is cheaper than Ensign (28.1x). A lower multiple can also mean the market expects less growth.
Which grows faster, ENSG or HCA?
Ensign: revenue grew +17.3% over the last year, against +4.3%.
Prices and ratios as of the last daily update; statements from SEC filings. Information only, not investment advice.