Community Psychiatric Reports Higher Net Income

Community Psychiatric Centers Inc., benefiting largely from price increases and business expansion, on Thursday reported a 16% increase in net income for the third quarter ended Aug. 31.

The company, the operator of a chain of acute psychiatric hospitals, reported quarterly net earnings of $19.7 million on revenue of $94.9 million, compared to net earnings of $16.9 million on sales of $80.3 million in the same quarter a year ago.

Community Psychiatric’s earnings for the first nine months of this fiscal year were $62.5 million on revenue of $282.28 million, compared to earnings of $55.5 million on revenue of $250.6 million for the same period a year ago.

Richard Conte, senior vice president of Community Psychiatric Centers, said he believes that the company’s adolescent business is on the rebound after suffering for nine months from adverse national publicity about hard-sell and abusive marketing in the industry.

He said that is reflected by a slight increase in occupancy levels at the company’s older hospitals in the third quarter, compared to declining occupancies for the first six months of the fiscal year.

But Conte acknowledged that his company’s third-quarter earnings increase was attributable mostly to the construction and acquisition of additional hospitals, price increases and corporate measures undertaken to reduce operating costs.