Tenet Hospital Chain’s First-Quarter Profits Jump 45%
Tenet HealthCare Corp., the nation's second-largest hospital chain, announced yesterday that its operating profit for the first quarter of the fiscal year increased by 45%, which the Santa Barbara, Calif.-based company attributed to higher admissions and reimbursement levels,
Reuters/Los Angeles Times reports. Tenet's operating income for the quarter ending Aug. 31 was $224 million, or 67 cents a share, compared with $154 million, or 48 cents a share, one year earlier. Revenue increased 14% to $3.30 billion. Admissions to Tenet's 114 hospitals increased 5.9%, and the company said that it "continues to obtain good price increases" -- "typical[ly]" 6% or more -- from managed care companies. Based on current pricing and admission trends, Tenet said it expects a 25% increase in earnings for this fiscal year. CEO Jeffrey Barbakow said that the company plans to make additional investments in diagnostic labs and emergency rooms, and added that the current economic downturn will have "little effect" on Tenet's operations (Borden, Los Angeles Times, 10/4).