Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Community Health's (CYH) Q3 Loss Widens, Admissions Drop

Read MoreHide Full Article

Community Health Systems, Inc. (CYH - Free Report) incurred adjusted loss of $1.64 per share in the third quarter of 2018, wider than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of $1 and the year-ago loss of 79 cents. The bottom line further deteriorated 108% year over year. This downside was mainly due to lower admissions in the reported quarter.

Quarterly Operational Update

In the quarter under review, net operating revenues were $3.4 billion, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.6%. However, the top line declined 5.9% year over year due to reduced number of hospitals, licensed beds and total admissions.

The third quarter witnessed a decrease of 12.4% in total admissions and a 12.2% fall in adjusted admissions when compared with the year-ago period.

Total operating costs and expenses were $3.3 billion, down 5.6% year over year, induced by lower salaries plus benefits and supplies.

Financial Update

Total assets at quarter end were $16.4 billion, down 6% from year-end 2017 level.

Cash and cash equivalents plunged 40.5% to $335 million from year-end 2017.

Cash flow from operations was $440 million for the quarter under discussion, having dropped 28.7% year over year.

The company has a long-term debt of $13.5 billion as of Sep 30, 2018, dipping 2.5% from 2017-end level.

2018 Guidance

Loss from continuing operations per share is now expected between $2.25 and $2.10, wider than the earlier expectation of $1.85-$1.70.

Community Health nudged down the low-end of its net operating revenues guidance to a range of $12.0-$14.2 billion, from the previous range of $13.9-$14.2 billion.

The company reiterated its adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) projection in the range of $1.60-$1.65 billion for 2018.

Zacks Rank and Performance of Peer Stocks

Community Health carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some stocks worth considering from the medical sector with the perfect combination of elements to surpass estimates in the next releases are as follows:

Amgen Inc. (AMGN - Free Report) is set to report third-quarter 2018 earnings figures on Nov 6. The stock has an Earnings ESP of +3.54% and a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Humana Inc. (HUM - Free Report) is set to announce third-quarter 2018 earnings performance on Nov 7. The stock has an Earnings ESP of +2.22% and a Zacks Rank of 2.

Bausch Health Cos Inc. (BHC - Free Report) has an Earnings ESP of +6.15% and a Zacks Rank of 3. The company is set to release third-quarter financial numbers on Nov 6.

The Hottest Tech Mega-Trend of All

Last year, it generated $8 billion in global revenues. By 2020, it's predicted to blast through the roof to $47 billion. Famed investor Mark Cuban says it will produce "the world's first trillionaires," but that should still leave plenty of money for regular investors who make the right trades early.

See Zacks' 3 Best Stocks to Play This Trend >>


Zacks' 7 Best Strong Buy Stocks (New Research Report)


Valued at $99, click below to receive our just-released report
predicting the 7 stocks that will soar highest in the coming month.


Click Here, It's Really Free

Published in