American Healthcare REIT: A Leadership Handoff Amid Uninterrupted Growth

Back in the seat, with the mission intact

When Danny Prosky stepped away in February after a severe health event that ultimately led to a heart transplant, the market might have braced for a pause. Instead, co-founder and former CEO Jeff Hanson re-took the helm and the company has not just held course—it has accelerated. "The theme of this quarter is the durability of the competitive advantages that our management team is deploying, to drive calculated growth as we work hard to scale, a powerful and a differentiated platform to generate even greater value for shareholders," Hanson told investors. The leadership transition is framed as mission-driven rather than indefinite:

The mission, the strategy and the discipline that's driven our results does not change.

The operating engine keeps compounding

Results confirm the narrative. Total portfolio same-store NOI grew 13.2% year-over-year, with the Integrated Senior Health Campus (Trilogy) segment up 16.1% and SHOP up 20.5%. "Trilogy continues to exceed our already high expectations," COO Gabe Willhite said, citing 90.7% same-store occupancy and a record 21.1% NOI margin. The SHOP portfolio, which is now roughly two-thirds of the business, keeps grinding out mid-teens to 20% growth. This is not a fresh story—management has been flagging the same levers for years. On the May 2026 call, CFO Brian Peay reminded investors: “On the SHOP side, we still have tremendous conviction in the space. We love our operator base, and we believe they can continue to deliver.” — Brian S. Peay, Chief Financial Officer · 2026-05-08 The operating portfolio continues to benefit from the same demographic tailwind that Danny Prosky called out in August 2025: “we feel very confident that we're in the early innings just because of the demographics.” — Danny Prosky, President and CEO · 2025-08-08

Capital velocity without loosening underwriting

What has changed is the sheer scale of the acquisition machine. Year-to-date, AHR has closed on $1.4 billion of new investments, with another $800 million-plus locked in a pipeline that CFO Brian Peay says is not reflected in guidance. Stefan Oh, head of investments, is explicit that discipline has not slipped: “...who we choose to work with is the most important component of our investment process.” — Stefan K. Oh, Head of Acquisitions or Investments · 2026-08-07 Roughly half the deals come through off-market channels, and the emphasis on acquisition velocity is paired with a focus on infill markets and assets with strong barriers to entry. The company has also widened its operator roster, adding two new regional partners this quarter—one opening the Northeast at scale.

Guidance and balance sheet: a clean foundation for offense

The external growth is funded by an unusually strong balance sheet. Net debt to EBITDA has fallen to 2.5x from 3.0x in Q1 and from 3.4x a year earlier, while Liabilities to Assets has compressed to 37.1% - down from 67% at the 2023 peak. The balance-sheet repair gives AHR room to keep buying without stretching. With the equity market receptive, the company raised roughly $1.5 billion of equity in Q2 and post-quarter, leaving ~$631 million of unsettled forward sale proceeds as dry powder. Against that backdrop, management raised full-year NFFO per share guidance to $2.15-$2.19, up from $2.03-$2.09, implying ~26% year-over-year growth. "We reported normalized FFO of $0.54 per diluted share for the second quarter, up 28.6% from the $0.42 in the same quarter last year," Peay noted, and the generational opportunity in senior housing is why the team is investing ahead of the curve rather than behind it.