Key Highlights

• SHOP same-store cash NOI increased 13.6% year over year with NOI Margin expanding 1.5 percentage points

• Same-store average occupancy rose to 86.7%, up 2.2 percentage points year over year

• $664 million in 2026 SHOP acquisitions completed or under definitive agreement

• Net Income of $0.24 per diluted share; Normalized FFO of $0.19 per diluted share

National Healthcare Properties, Inc.(NASDAQ:NHP), a self-managed real estate Investment trust focused on senior housing in the United States, reported third-quarter 2026 results on November 4, 2026. The company, which has been transitioning toward a portfolio concentrated entirely on senior housing operating properties, continued to expand its asset base through acquisitions while posting double-digit same-store income growth.

Operating Performance

The company's SHOP segment delivered same-store cash net Operating Income growth of 13.6% year over year, the headline figure for the quarter. Same-store average occupancy reached 86.7%, a 2.2 percentage point increase from Q3 2025. Revenue per occupied room increased 4.0% year over year, while the SHOP same-store cash NOI margin expanded by 1.5 percentage points to 24.3%. These metrics pointed to a combination of pricing power and occupancy gains across the portfolio.

At the total portfolio level, same-store cash NOI growth was 8.4% year over year. The outpatient medical Facility segment saw same-store cash NOI decline by 0.3%, though ending occupancy remained elevated at 95.6%, up 0.2 percentage points year over year.

Net income attributable to common stockholders was $0.24 per basic and diluted share. Nareit-defined FFO came in at $0.13 per diluted share, a 43.5% decrease year over year, while Normalized FFO was $0.19 per diluted share, down 29.6%. The gap between NOI growth and FFO performance reflects the costs and Capital Structure adjustments associated with the company's ongoing portfolio transformation and Balance Sheet repositioning.

Acquisition Activity

During Q3, NHP acquired 22 SHOP communities comprising 1,381 units for a total purchase price of $300 million. These acquisitions introduced a new operator relationship with Priority Life Care, which manages three of the communities. The remaining 19 are managed by existing operating partners. Subsequent to the quarter, the company added one additional community with 79 units for $26 million. Year-to-date, NHP has acquired 25 SHOP communities for approximately $424 million.

Looking ahead, the company has signed purchase and sale agreements for approximately $240 million of additional SHOP acquisitions with estimated weighted-average year-one and year-three cap rates of approximately 7.4% and 8.7%, respectively. An additional approximately $148 million of SHOP acquisitions are under non-binding letters of intent. These combined transactions total approximately $388 million and comprise 1,385 primarily assisted living and memory care units.

CEO Michael Anderson characterised 2026 as a transformational year, citing the company's progress toward a SHOP-only portfolio and an investment-grade balance sheet. During the quarter, NHP used proceeds from a new unsecured term Loan and the first Tranche of its outpatient medical facility exit to reduce secured debt.

Balance Sheet Repositioning

The company completed the sale of one non-core SHOP community in California for approximately $42 million during August 2026 and entered into a definitive agreement in September to sell another non-core property. These dispositions are part of the broader strategy to concentrate the portfolio on higher-growth senior housing Assets while exiting lower-growth segments.

The use of an unsecured term loan to refinance secured Debt represents a step toward investment-grade status, which would lower the company's Cost of Capital and broaden its access to the debt markets.

What It All Means

National Healthcare Properties' Q3 2026 results reflect a company in the midst of a deliberate transformation, pivoting from a diversified healthcare REIT toward a focused senior housing operator. The 13.6% SHOP same-store NOI growth, combined with $664 million in 2026 Acquisition activity, underlines the operating and growth potential of the senior housing sector as demographic trends continue to favour needs-based elderly housing. The decline in FFO metrics, meanwhile, highlights the near-term costs of executing a large-scale portfolio rotation.