(Reuters) – HCA Healthcare missed Wall Street estimates for quarterly profit on Tuesday, hurt by an increase in staffing costs and weak sales at its physician staffing joint venture Valesco, sending its shares down 10% in premarket trading.
The company did not provide details on the unit, but analysts had anticipated a hit from an increase in physician expenses during the quarter.
HCA in July said it had acquired majority stake in Valesco, its joint venture with a unit of bankrupt physician provider service Envision Healthcare.
HCA, the largest for-profit hospital operator in the U.S., reported adjusted profit of $3.91 per share for the third quarter ended September, compared with analysts’ average estimate of $3.98 per share, according to LSEG data.
(Reporting by Leroy Leo in Bengaluru; Editing by Shweta Agarwal)
