Hospital chains like Tenet Healthcare (THC Quote) and Universal Health Services (UHS Quote) have just suffered through an especially painful third quarter.
Both companies, along with industry giant HCA (HCA Quote), weathered serious damage as a result of two recent hurricanes. Moreover, they have taken the big storm-related hits at a time when major challenges -- such as weak volumes and bad debts from the uninsured -- continue to hurt the industry as a whole.
Thus, some experts have started bracing for poor results from the group. Lehman Brothers analyst Adam Feinstein, in fact, downgraded the entire sector from positive to neutral on Monday in anticipation of a "very tough earnings season" for most of the companies he covers. (Lehman Brothers does and seeks to do business with companies covered in its research reports.) ...
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