Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare saw its profit decline year over year in the first quarter of 2022.
The 182-hospital system reported revenues of $14.95 billion in the first quarter of this year, up from $13.98 billion in the same period of 2021. The for-profit hospital operator said same-facility admissions, emergency room visits and inpatient and outpatient surgeries increased year over year.
HCA reported higher expenses. Salaries and benefits climbed 10.1 percent year over year to $6.94 billion. Supplies expenses were $2.32 billion, up 4.4 percent from the same quarter of 2021.
"In the first quarter, we had a number of positive volume and revenue indicators," HCA CEO Sam Hazen said in an April 22 earnings release. "Unfortunately, they were offset by higher than expected inflationary pressure on labor costs."
After factoring in expenses and nonoperating items, HCA's net income in the first quarter of 2022 totaled $1.27 billion, down from $1.42 billion in the same quarter a year earlier.
The company trimmed its 2022 guidance April 22. HCA said it expects revenues of $59.5 billion to $61.5 billion and net income of $4.95 billion to $5.34 billion this year. In its fourth quarter earnings release, HCA said it expected revenues of $60 billion to $62 billion and net income of $5.56 billion to $5.84 billion.
As of March 31, HCA's balance sheet reflected cash and cash equivalents of $2.37 billion, total debt of $37.7 billion and total assets of $52.21 billion.