Fitch Ratings affirmed its “A+” rating on Vancouver, Wash.-based PeaceHealth’s outstanding debt, affecting a total of $477 million of debt.
The affirmation is a result of several factors, including PeaceHealth’s strong market position, geographic diversity, favorable liquidity metrics and improved debt service coverage. Fitch also acknowledged the health system’s upcoming capital spending and recovering operating performance following an EMR implementation.
The outlook is stable.
https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/finance/moody-s-assigns-a3-rating-to-tower-health-s-bonds.html
Moody’s Investors Service assigned its “A3” rating to West Reading, Pa.-based Tower Health’s proposed $584 million series 2017 bonds.
Additionally, Moody’s downgraded Tower Health’s outstanding ratings to “A3” from “A2.”
The assignment is a result of several factors, including Tower Health’s solid market position, historically healthy operating performance and favorable absolute liquidity metrics. Moody’s also acknowledged the increased risk associated with the health system’s recent purchase of five hospitals, which resulted in the downgrade of Tower Health’s outstanding ratings.
The outlook is revised to negative from stable, reflecting the increased risk of integrating five formerly for-profit hospitals into the nonprofit health network.
S&P Global Ratings downgraded Providence, R.I.-based Care New England Health System’s rating to “BB-” from “BB.”
“The lower rating reflects CNE’s prolonged period of extremely weak financial performance, thin balance sheet metrics, and declining volume trends that portend deeper utilization challenges and competitive threats within its overall service market,” said Jennifer Soule, an S&P Global Ratings credit analyst.
The outlook is negative, reflecting uncertainties regarding CNE’s ability to shore up finances and close Pawtucket, R.I-based Memorial Hospital in a timely manner. In addition, S&P acknowledged CNE’s continued struggle to formalize a partnership with another provider.
Moody’s Investors Service downgraded Philadelphia- based Albert Einstein Health Network’s bond and issuer rating to “Baa3” from “Baa2,” affecting $447 million of outstanding debt.
The downgrade is a result of several factors, including the health system’s negative operating performance in fiscal year 2017, declining liquidity measures and uncertainty in state funding status. Moody’s also acknowledged the health system’s planned improvement strategies to bolster liquidity metrics.
The outlook is revised to negative from stable, reflecting the health system’s severe operating loss and declining liquidity in fiscal year 2017.
https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/finance/hca-s-net-income-tumbles-to-426m-in-q3.html
Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare, which operates more than 170 hospitals, saw revenue increase in the third quarter of 2017, but the company’s net income declined year over year.
HCA’s financial results were in line with the third quarter preview the company issued in October. HCA ended the third quarter of this year with net income of $426 million on revenues of $10.7 billion. That’s compared to the same period of 2016, when the company recorded net income of $618 million on revenues of $10.3 billion.
On an earnings call Tuesday, HCA Chairman and CEO R. Milton Johnson said the company took an estimated $140 million hit from hurricanes Irma and Harvey. HCA has a total of 18 hospital campuses, eight freestanding emergency rooms, five surgery centers and one freestanding cancer center in the Houston and Corpus Christi, Texas, markets, which were two areas significantly impacted by Hurricane Harvey. The company has 50 hospital campuses, 32 surgery centers, 17 freestanding ERs and 10 diagnostic imaging centers in Florida, where several facilities felt the impact of Hurricane Irma.
The Texas Medicaid Waiver program also took a toll on HCA finances. The company said it took a $50 million hit related to the program in the third quarter of this year.
Mr. Johnson said the hurricanes and the Texas Medicaid waiver reduction make evaluating the third quarter results more complex. “However, if you look at the broad trends to normalize with the destruction in the hurricane affected markets, we believe many of the trends are comparable with the first half of 2017,” he said.
In addition to releasing its third quarter financial results, HCA announced the board approved a new $2 billion share repurchase program. Including this newly announced program and the company’s share repurchase program announced in November 2016, HCA has approximately $2.15 billion authorized for share repurchases.
HENRY KOTULA 