Like HCA, hospital chain Universal Health Services posted flat earnings in its second quarter and reduced its earnings guidance for the remainder of 2017.
King of Prussia, Pa.-based UHS posted net income of $188.1 million on revenue of $2.61 billion in the second quarter compared with net income of $191.1 million on revenue of $2.43 billion in the year-earlier period, the company said in its earnings disclosure Tuesday after the markets closed.
Income from operations, another gauge of performance, was $330.2 million in the second quarter compared with $333.3 million in the year-ago quarter.
UHS, which owns 26 acute-care hospitals and 294 smaller behavioral health hospitals, picked up two hospitals over the last year. Its 24 acute-care hospitals owned for more than a year saw revenue rise 5.1% in the quarter compared to a year ago, but revenue per admission was flat.
The health system reduced its top-end and bottom-end net earnings guidance by 20 cents from a range of $7.50 per share to $8.00 per share. It had been a range of $7.70 to $8.20.
At same-store behavioral health hospitals, revenue in the quarter increased 2.2% but sank 1.4% in revenue per admission.
UHS followed bellwether HCA in reducing earnings guidance after second-quarter results that did not meet analyst expectations. HCA's admissions rose just 1% in the quarter but surgeries across its 170 hospitals fell vs. the year-ago performance.