DaVita lifts profit forecast after beating estimates on steady dialysis demand

DaVita raised its 2026 profit outlook after a first quarter that beat Wall Street estimates, a sign that steady demand for kidney dialysis is still overpowering the cost pressures that have weighed on the business. The Denver-based provider now expects adjusted earnings of $14.10 to $15.20 a share, up from a prior range of $13.60 to $15, after posting adjusted earnings of $2.87 a share for the period ended March 31.

The company’s quarterly revenue reached $3.416 billion, while operating income came in at $482 million. Operating cash flow was $321 million and free cash flow was $140 million. DaVita also repurchased 3.0 million shares at an average price of $133.70 each, reinforcing management’s view that the business has regained momentum after a stretch marked by rising patient-care and operating expenses.

What matters most for the outlook is that dialysis is not a discretionary service. DaVita delivered 7,029,525 U.S. treatments in the quarter, or 91,650 a day, and normalized non-acquired treatment growth was 0.1% from a year earlier. Revenue per treatment rose to $417.59 from $400.14, but patient care costs per treatment also climbed to $280.11 from $271.77, showing how narrowly the company must manage the spread between reimbursement and clinical expense. General and administrative expense was $320 million, up from $283 million a year earlier.

Chief executive Javier Rodriguez said the quarter reflected “clinical excellence” and “operating rigor,” while management said the company beat expectations in treatment volume, revenue per treatment and cost per treatment across its U.S. dialysis business. DaVita also lifted full-year adjusted operating income guidance to $2.15 billion to $2.25 billion, after already increasing its 2026 earnings outlook in February.

The stronger forecast has wider implications for health-care economics. Dialysis sits inside a Medicare-sensitive reimbursement structure, and DaVita has said end-stage renal disease is the first and only disease state eligible for Medicare coverage for dialysis and dialysis-related services. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services finalized updated ESRD payment policies effective January 1, 2025, underscoring how heavily the business depends on public reimbursement rather than consumer spending.

The company’s results also point to the scale of chronic kidney disease in the United States. The American Kidney Fund said 554,692 Americans were on dialysis in 2025, and kidney-failure prevalence has risen 28% since 2012. That long-running burden helps explain why DaVita’s demand remains durable, even as the company continues to work through the fallout from an April 2024 ransomware attack that exposed personal data for 2.7 million people. DaVita’s March 18 update on value-based kidney care showed year-over-year improvement in its CKCC program, suggesting the company is trying to build a broader kidney-care platform around a still-growing chronic disease market.