Tenet 2nd-Quarter Profit Up 23%

Tenet Healthcare Corp. said Thursday that its fiscal second-quarter profit rose 23% as it acquired new hospitals and recorded higher admissions at its existing facilities.

Santa Barbara-based Tenet said profit before a gain rose to $127 million, or 41 cents a share, from $103 million, or 34 cents, a year earlier. The results match the average estimate of analysts.

The gains at Tenet come as rival Columbia/HCA Healthcare Corp. has reversed its expansion policy amid a government probe and made plans to shed as many as a third of its hospitals. Tenet shops carefully for its acquisitions, looking for hospitals it will be able to run well, analysts said.

“They have a good growth strategy,” said Barney Rosen, an analyst with Argus Research.

Tenet shares fell $1.06 to close at $32.75 on the New York Stock Exchange. Revenue at the hospital chain rose 15%, to $2.43 billion from $2.11 billion.

Admissions at Tenet’s hospitals rose 16% from a year earlier as it bought eight facilities, sold two and closed two, bringing its total to 129.