Investors Acquire 7.7% of Apria Healthcare

Investor Richard C. Blum and his affiliates acquired a 7.7% stake in Apria Healthcare Group Inc., the Costa Mesa-based provider of home health care services that is seeking to reverse financial losses and boost its share price. The group purchased 4 million shares as an investment, according to documents filed Friday with the Securities and Exchange Commission. They bought the entire stake from June 15 to July 16 at $5.81 to $6.72 a share. The stock, which has lost more than half of its value this year, rose 13 cents a share Friday to $6.50. Blum is the husband of Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.). On Thursday, Apria posted a second-quarter loss of $9 million, or 17 cents a share--more than double what analysts generally predicted. The troubled Costa Mesa home health care company attributed the loss to its planned cancellation of unprofitable contracts with managed care firms. A year earlier, the company lost $69.9 million, or $1.36 a share. Revenue fell 18% to $240.6 million from $295.8 million a year ago. For the first six months, the company reported a loss of $15.6 million, or 30 cents a share, compared with a loss of $50.6 million, or 99 cents a share, a year ago. Revenue fell 19.5% to $491.2 million from $609.6 million.