New York, June 22, 2021 -- Moody's Investors Service (Moody's) placed the ratings of LifePoint
Health, Inc. ("LifePoint") on review for downgrade following
the company's proposed acquisition of Kindred Healthcare LLC ("Kindred")
. The ratings placed under review for downgrade include the B2
Corporate Family Rating (CFR), B2-PD Probability of Default
Rating, B1 senior secured rating, and Caa1 senior unsecured
rating. The outlook was revised to rating under review from stable.
On June 21, 2021, LifePoint announced plans to acquire Kindred
for an undisclosed sum. No further details are available at this
time in regards to the updated capital structure. Management expects
the transaction to close by the end of 2021.
On Review for Downgrade:
..Issuer: LifePoint Health, Inc.
.... Corporate Family Rating, Placed
on Review for Downgrade, currently B2
.... Probability of Default Rating,
Placed on Review for Downgrade, currently B2-PD
....Senior Secured Bank Credit Facility,
Placed on Review for Downgrade, currently B1 (LGD3)
....Senior Secured Regular Bond/Debenture,
Placed on Review for Downgrade, currently B1 (LGD3)
....Senior Unsecured Regular Bond/Debenture,
Placed on Review for Downgrade, currently Caa1 (LGD5)
Outlook Actions:
..Issuer: LifePoint Health, Inc.
....Outlook, Changed To Rating Under
Review From Stable
RATINGS RATIONALE / FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO AN UPGRADE OR DOWNGRADE
OF THE RATINGS
Excluding the ongoing review, LifePoint's B2 CFR reflects
the company's high financial leverage, with debt to EBITDA of approximately
5.1 times as of March 31, 2021. Moody's expects improvement
in LifePoint's leverage and cash flow to be driven by a decline in capital
expenditures as significant investments in replacement facilities are
now complete. LifePoint faces a moderate level of implementation
risk, however, with respect to the outsourcing of revenue
cycle management functions at some of its hospitals over the next few
quarters. Further, Moody's has very low growth expectations
for non-urban hospitals given multiple industry headwinds.
LifePoint's rating is supported by the company's large scale and good
geographic diversity. LifePoint has maintained good liquidity that
has been helped in part by substantial government aid to hospitals and
good access to the capital markets.
The rating review will focus on the combined firm's larger scale,
diversified service offering and opportunities for synergies. The
review will also focus on the growth and financial profile following the
transaction, including capital structure, financial leverage,
financial policies and liquidity.
ESG considerations are material to the rating of LifePoint. With
respect to governance, LifePoint's ownership by private equity firm
Apollo Management will result in the deployment of aggressive financial
policies. While LifePoint may pursue an IPO longer-term
given its large scale, Apollo may take dividends along the way,
particularly if the company achieves its cash flow and deleveraging goals.
As a for-profit hospital operator, LifePoint also faces high
social risk. The affordability of hospitals and the practice of
balance billing has garnered substantial social and political attention.
Hospitals are now required to publicly provide the list price of all of
their services, although compliance and practice is inconsistent
across the industry. Additionally, hospitals rely on Medicare
and Medicaid for a substantial portion of reimbursement. Any changes
to reimbursement to Medicare or Medicaid directly impacts hospital revenue
and profitability. Further, as LifePoint is focused on non-urban
communities, slow population growth tempers the company's capacity
to grow admissions.
LifePoint Health, Inc., headquartered in Brentwood,
Tennessee, is an operator of general acute care hospitals,
community hospitals, regional health systems, physician practices,
outpatient centers and post-acute care facilities in non-urban
markets. The company operates 88 hospitals in 29 states under the
private ownership of funds affiliated with Apollo Global Management,
LLC. LifePoint merged with RegionalCare in November 2018.
Revenues are approximately $8.2 billion.
The principal methodology used in these ratings was Business and Consumer
Service Industry published in October 2016 and available at https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_1037985.
Alternatively, please see the Rating Methodologies page on www.moodys.com
for a copy of this methodology.
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Jonathan Kanarek, CFA
VP - Senior Credit Officer
Corporate Finance Group
Moody's Investors Service, Inc.
250 Greenwich Street
New York, NY 10007
U.S.A.
JOURNALISTS: 1 212 553 0376
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Ola Hannoun-Costa
Associate Managing Director
Corporate Finance Group
JOURNALISTS: 1 212 553 0376
Client Service: 1 212 553 1653
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