HCA Healthcare Inc

Strong Financial Performance: HCA Healthcare reported a 20% year-over-year increase in diluted earnings per share for Q1 2025, reaching $6.45. Same facility volumes were favorable, with inpatient admissions up 2.6%, equivalent admissions up 2.8%, and emergency room visits increased by 4%. Same facility revenue grew nearly 6%, aided by a 3% increase in revenue per equivalent admission.

Operational Challenges: While inpatient admissions rose, outpatient surgeries saw a slight decline, attributed to lower acuity cases and the impact of the leap year. The company maintains that this was within expectations, but it still represents a mixed performance in surgical volumes. Inpatient surgical volumes were slightly up, emphasizing a balanced but cautious outlook for this segment.

Cost Management and Profitability: HCA achieved an adjusted EBITDA margin improvement of 110 basis points year-over-year. Cost management was effective with salaries and benefits reducing as a percentage of revenue by 80 basis points, and other operating expenses remaining stable. The net benefits from Medicaid state supplemental payments increased by $80 million compared to the previous year.