Reuters: Deals: TPG mulls offer for homecare provider LHC: sources

Reuters: Deals Reuters.com is your source for breaking news, business, financial and investing news, including personal finance and stocks. Reuters is the leading global provider of news, financial information and technology solutions to the world's media, financial institutions, businesses and individuals. // via fulltextrssfeed.com

TPG mulls offer for homecare provider LHC: sources Mar 14th 2012, 13:29 By Greg Roumeliotis Wed Mar 14, 2012 9:29am EDT (Reuters) - Private equity firm TPG Capital LP is considering making an offer for LHC Group Inc (LHCG.O) as the provider of home health and hospice services reviews its strategic alternatives, two people familiar with the matter said. TPG approached LHC after it announced last month that it had appointed J.P. Morgan Securities LLC (JPM.N) to advise it on its options, the people said. This, however, may not necessarily result in an offer being made, they cautioned. TPG declined to comment, while a spokesman for LHC did not respond to a request for comment. LHC, which has a market capitalization of $345 million, said on February 14 that it had begun a strategic review process to enhance stockholder value and that it had not set a definitive timetable for completion of the process. The homecare industry is benefiting from long-term demographic drivers, as more people live longer and require chronic care for more time. But LHC Group, as well as its peers Almost Family (AFAM.O), Gentiva Health (GTIV.O) and Amedisys Inc (AMED.O) have been hit by a series of setbacks, including reimbursement cuts, federal investigations into billing practices and new Medicare regulations. LHC currently trades at 5.8 times enterprise value to 12-month estimated earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization -- a measure of how investors value it -- compared with 5.9 times for Almost Family and Gentiva and 4.8 times for Amedisys, according to Thomson Reuters Starmine. Founded in Louisiana in 1994, LHC serves over 80,000 patients annually in 19 U.S. states. It has given guidance for fully diluted 2012 earnings per share in the range of $1.45 to $1.65, up from a diluted loss per share of $0.73 in 2011. (Reporting by Greg Roumeliotis in New York; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn, Dave Zimmerman) Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints

You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed, or manage all your subscriptions