Wall Street moves fast. By the time a strong earnings report lands on financial headlines, the easy money is often already made. Investors who consistently get ahead of the crowd look beyond income statements and watch the signals that precede those reports: job postings, website traffic, employee sentiment, and insider transactions.

Alternative data provides this advantage. Right now, two healthcare stocks are lighting up the AltIndex dashboard in a way that merits a serious look: Nutex Health (NUTX) and Encompass Health (EHC). Both operate in different corners of the healthcare delivery space, and both show a compelling mix of strong fundamentals and alternative data tailwinds. Let's dig in.

But before we dive in, a pre-IPO investment opportunity:

Today’s sponsor:

While Nutex represents a high-octane growth story, Encompass Health serves as a disciplined compounder. This stock quietly delivers year after year without unnecessary noise. As the largest owner and operator of inpatient rehabilitation hospitals in the United States, Encompass runs a network of 173 hospitals across 39 states and Puerto Rico, serving patients recovering from strokes, joint replacements, neurological conditions, and major injuries.

The business model is remarkably durable: an aging U.S. population creates growing demand for rehabilitation services, while a national footprint provides a barrier to entry that competitors would spend decades trying to replicate. Steady streams of Medicare and insurance reimbursements provide visible, recurring revenue.

Encompass Health closed out 2025 on a high note. CEO Mark Tarr called Q4 performance "very strong, capping a stellar 2025," and the numbers back that up.

Revenue growth has been consistent at around 10 to 12% per year for several years running, driven by more patient discharges and higher reimbursement rates per discharge. In Q4 2025, total discharges grew 5.3% year-over-year while net patient revenue per discharge rose 4.1%, showing Encompass is extracting more value from each patient interaction.

The company also expanded capacity aggressively in 2025, adding 517 inpatient rehabilitation beds through eight new hospitals and 127 bed additions to existing facilities. New beds today become revenue-generating capacity tomorrow.

Encompass carries about $2.4 billion in long-term debt, a figure that remains manageable within the proper context. The company's leverage ratio (debt to adjusted EBITDA) sits at approximately 2.0x, down from 2.3x a year ago and meaningfully lower than its historical levels above 3x. Debt is well covered by operating cash flow, and the balance sheet has a Piotroski F-Score of 8 out of 9, a rigorous multi-factor measure of financial health where 7 to 9 signals strong and improving fundamentals. The Altman Z-Score is 3.5, placing it firmly in the low-bankruptcy-risk zone.

The company also returned capital to shareholders through $158 million in buybacks during 2025, with $332 million of repurchase capacity remaining, plus a quarterly dividend. Return on equity stands at 23.2%. These metrics describe a mature, highly profitable healthcare franchise rather than a company in distress.

These combined signals show that patients are finding Encompass, internal operations are running well, and the company is confident enough to invest in headcount. Taken together with consistent 10 to 12% revenue growth and a history of beating earnings estimates, EHC appears to be a stock where alternative data reinforces the financial story.

Encompass Health carries meaningful long-term debt of approximately $2.4B. While manageable at current earnings levels, any deterioration in Medicare reimbursement rates would put pressure on margins. A significant portion of revenue comes from government programs, so policy changes in Washington are a key variable to monitor. Additionally, the company is in active expansion mode, meaning capital requirements remain elevated and execution risk on new hospital openings is real.

Nutex Health represents a different kind of healthcare bet: smaller, faster-growing, and carrying more risk alongside more potential upside. The company operates a network of 27 micro-hospitals and hospital outpatient departments across 12 states, combined with a Population Health Management division that runs primary care-centric physician networks.

Micro-hospitals are an efficient and relatively new model featuring a smaller footprint and lower overhead than traditional hospitals. They are strategically located in underserved or high-growth suburban areas to provide emergency services, inpatient observation, and specialized outpatient procedures. As healthcare moves toward decentralized, convenient access points, Nutex occupies a strong position in this niche.

The company has also been leveraging the federal No Surprises Act's Independent Dispute Resolution (IDR) process to recover fairer reimbursements from commercial insurers, a strategy that has dramatically reshaped its financial trajectory over the past two years.

Nutex's 2025 numbers are genuinely eye-catching. Full-year revenue of $875.3 million represents an 82.4% increase over 2024, which followed a 93.8% increase in 2023. The company swung from a net loss of $45.8 million in 2023 to a net income of $70.8 million in 2025. Adjusted EBITDA jumped 152.6% to $259.6 million, and operating cash flow reached $248.1 million for the full year.

The balance sheet is a standout for a growth-stage healthcare company, showing $185.6 million in cash against just $29.2 million in long-term debt as of year-end 2025. This net cash position is rare in a sector where many companies carry multi-billion-dollar debt loads. The company has also announced a second stock repurchase program, underscoring management's conviction that the stock is undervalued.

A meaningful portion of Nutex's revenue acceleration has been driven by IDR arbitration recoveries, which are favorable rulings in disputes with commercial insurers over out-of-network billing. Management frames this as a sustainable element of its revenue cycle strategy rather than a one-time windfall. Investors should track whether IDR-driven revenue proves durable over time, especially as the company has been restating some prior period financials. While management notes these figures are materially the same as originally reported, they require careful monitoring.

This cluster of signals is particularly compelling because of its internal consistency. Insiders are betting their own money, patients are engaging online, and the company is building capacity through hiring. These signals tell a unified story of an undervalued company in active growth mode.

The stock is down roughly 46% year-to-date as of late March 2026 despite posting an 82% revenue gain and reaching strong profitability. That divergence between operating performance and stock price is where alternative data provides an edge, as the data on the ground tells a different story than the market price.

The most significant risk with Nutex is IDR revenue durability. If regulators tighten the IDR process or insurers find ways to limit payouts, revenue could fall short of expectations. The financial restatements during 2025 also create a credibility overhang for some investors. With 27 facilities across 12 states, Nutex remains a relatively small operator, and execution risk on new hospital openings remains. While the low debt is a positive, the profitability track record is still short.

Mainstream financial press will cover Encompass Health when it beats earnings consensus and Nutex when a big-name analyst upgrades the stock. By then, the price will have already moved.

The AltIndex thesis is simple: the data that precedes those events is already out there. Web traffic changes weeks before a quarterly report, employee sentiment shifts as internal culture evolves, and job postings go live before new revenue is recognized. For both NUTX and EHC, the alternative data picture is currently aligned with or ahead of the financial story.

Want more healthcare stock ideas backed by alternative data? Explore AltIndex's Best Healthcare Stocks page, updated in real time.

Disclaimer: The information provided is for educational and informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial or investment advice. All investments involve risk, and you should conduct your own research or consult a qualified professional before making any investment decisions.

Your feedback matters to us! Let us know what you liked or didn’t like about today’s edition.

That’s all for today. Did we miss anything? Smash the reply button to let me know.

Cheers,
Brandon & Blake of Invested Inc