Ardent Health Faces Class Action Lawsuit Following Accounting Disclosures and Share Price Collapse
San Francisco, Friday, 9 January 2026.
Investors have initiated a securities class action lawsuit against Ardent Health, Inc. (NYSE: ARDT) after the company’s stock value plummeted approximately 33% in November 2025. Filed on January 8, 2026, the complaint alleges that Ardent Health misled shareholders regarding the collectability of its accounts receivable and the adequacy of its professional liability reserves. Specifically, the lawsuit claims the healthcare operator relied on a “180-day cliff” method rather than detailed historical reviews to reserve accounts, leading to a sudden $43 million revenue reduction and a $54 million increase in liability reserves in Q3 2025. This accounting shift, coupled with a significant cut to the company’s 2025 EBITDA guidance, has raised serious concerns about financial governance. Investors who purchased securities between July 18, 2024, and November 12, 2025, have until March 9, 2026, to join the litigation as lead plaintiffs.
Accounting Methodology Under Scrutiny
The core of the litigation, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, rests on allegations that Ardent Health maintained insufficient internal controls over financial reporting during the Class Period of July 18, 2024, to November 12, 2025 [1][2]. The complaint asserts that the company did not primarily rely on detailed reviews of historical collection trends to value its accounts receivable. Instead, Ardent allegedly utilized a “180-day cliff” framework, where accounts were only fully reserved after aging for six months [1][4]. This methodology reportedly masked the true collectability of revenues until the company implemented a new system that recognizes reserves earlier in an account’s life cycle [1][4]. The transition to this more rigorous accounting standard necessitated a $43 million reduction in revenue for the third quarter of 2025, which the company disclosed on November 12, 2025 [2][4].
Liability Reserves and Guidance Reductions
Compounding the revenue adjustments, Ardent Health simultaneously disclosed significant exposure regarding professional liability claims. The company recorded a $54 million increase in reserves specifically tied to settlements and ongoing litigation arising from claims in New Mexico between 2019 and 2022 [3][4]. These adverse financial developments forced Ardent to revise its forward-looking statements significantly. The company cut its full-year 2025 EBITDA guidance by $57.5 million, lowering the projection from a range of $575 million to $615 million down to between $530 million and $555 million [3]. This adjustment represented a decrease of approximately 9.664% at the midpoint, which management attributed in part to persistent industry-wide cost pressures and payer denials [3].
Market Reaction and Legal Timeline
The simultaneous release of the revenue write-downs and reserve increases triggered an immediate sell-off of Ardent Health stock. On November 13, 2025, the day following the disclosures, the share price fell from $14.05 to close at $9.30 [2][5]. This collapse represented a single-day decline of 33.808%, wiping out a substantial portion of the company’s market capitalization [2]. Several law firms, including Hagens Berman and Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP, have since mobilized to represent shareholders, citing violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 [1][3]. Investors who suffered losses during the Class Period have until March 9, 2026, to file motions to be appointed as lead plaintiffs in the case Postiwala v. Ardent Health, Inc. [1][3].