Net earnings from continuing operations increased 13 percent for the quarter and 19 percent for the year.
The company acquired 13 ASCs in the fourth quarter and added a total of 20 centers in 2008, bringing the total number of ASCs for the company up to 189 by the end of 2008.
"We are pleased to have achieved double-digit earnings growth in the fourth quarter during a tough economic environment while meeting our financial guidance for the quarter and the full year," said Christopher Holden, president and CEO of AmSurg, in the news release. "Reflecting this environment, same-facility revenue was essentially flat for each month of the quarter. In addition, our revenue performance was affected, as expected, by the negative impact of the Medicare rule revising the payment system for ASCs, which totaled $0.01 per diluted share for the quarter and $0.05 per diluted share for 2008. Although this impact for the fourth quarter was offset by positive same-facility procedure growth, it contributed to a flat same-center revenue performance on a comparable-quarter basis.
"For 2009, we again expect to fund our planned capital expenditures primarily with internally generated funds, with cash flow from operations for 2009 expected in a range of $95 million to $100 million," he said. "We also have additional capacity under our revolving credit facility, which matures in July 2011, of approximately $50 million. With our strong financial position and sources of liquidity, we are confident of having the financial resources to fund our anticipated growth for 2009, despite the challenging credit and economic environment."
AmSurg is projecting revenues in a range of $650 million-$680 million for 2009, up from about $601 million in 2008, and the addition of 13-16 new centers for the year.
Read the news release about the AmSurg fourth quarter.
