LAFAYETTE, La. (AP) — Home health provider LHC Group Inc. said Monday that its board determined that LHC’s current operating plan and stock buyback program are the best ways to boost the value of the company’s stock.
Shareholders who may have been expecting more from the review sent its shares down more than 5 percent,
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In November, the Lafayette, La.-based company’s board began a review of all “strategic alternatives,” for the company.
When the review was completed, LHC said its board unanimously decided to continue the company’s 2012 to 2016 operating plan, along with its stock buyback program.
“This thorough process has affirmed our belief in the long-term value of our company based on our proven ability to grow through our industry-leading model for hospital partnerships, to improve efficiency by leveraging technology and to control overhead costs,” Keith Myers, LHC the company’s chairman and chief executive, said in a statement.
The board also approved the continuation of a stock repurchase program that allows LHC to repurchase up to $50 million of the company’s outstanding common stock. Buybacks under program would be funded from available cash or debt, LHC said.
Last month, the company said its first-quarter profit edged up to $7.7 million, or 42 cents per share, while revenue fell nearly 2 percent to $158.8 million.
LHC also backed its full-year guidance of $1.45 to $1.65 per share in $640 million to $660 million. Analysts, on average, expect a profit of $1.59 per share on $649 million in revenue, according to a FactSet poll.
LHC shares fell 99 cents, or 5.5 percent, to $16.94 in morning trading. They had traded as high as $25.28 almost a year ago, but fell as low as $12.34 per share late last November.
