It's Q1 earnings season. Some of the industry's heavy hitters are up this week.
April 30: Tenet Healthcare Corp.: The for-profit hospital chain last week announced it bought an additional 15% ownership interest in ambulatory surgery center chain United Surgical Partners International for $630 million. Tenet now owns 95% of USPI. Baylor Scott & White Health owns the remaining 5%. Dallas-based Tenet continues to shop its revenue cycle company Conifer Health Solutions to prospective buyers.
May 1: HCA Healthcare: In its bid to buy Mission Health, HCA is eying a six-hospital system that has a 49% market share across 11 counties in North Carolina. According to Zacks Equity Research, the bad flu season, plus benefits from the tax reform law should bolster the Nashville-based company's Q1 results.
May 1: Community Health Systems: It's been a bumpy ride of late for CHS' shareholders. Shares were recently valued at less than $4, down from $4.48 at the end of 2017. The price climbed to more than $6 a share this year for a time only to give up those gains in a matter of weeks. The Franklin, Tenn.-based company in March retained a team of consultants to help with debt restructuring.
May 2: Humana: The Louisville, Ky.-based insurer this month announced that it was joining two private equity firms to create the nation's largest hospice company. The plan is to acquire Curo Health Services and combine it with Kindred Healthcare, which Humana and its equity partners had previously targeted for acquisition. Humana's revenue totaled $53.8 billion in 2017, down 1.1% from 2016.
May 3: Cigna: The Bloomfield, Conn.-based insurer is in talks to buy pharmacy benefit manager Express Scripts. In an April 25 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Cigna CEO David Cordani said the move "was not a defensive reaction" to Amazon nor to fend off "any offers" to be acquired itself. Rather, he said, the $54 billion deal is all about driving "greater affordability and choice" for consumers. The insurer recorded $41.6 billion in revenue in 2017, up 5% from 2016.
Also reporting this week: Aetna, LifePoint and electronic health record system vendor Cerner Corp.