What happened?
Shares of Community Health Systems (CYH -4.47%) -- a company that operates acute care facilities -- are skyrocketing on Wednesday and are up by 33.4% as of 1:09 p.m. EDT. Investors are bidding up shares of the healthcare company following the release of its third-quarter earnings report after the market closed on Tuesday.
So what
The pandemic has severely impacted Community Health Systems' business. Despite the headwinds, though, the company managed to beat estimates during its third quarter ending Sept. 30. The company's revenue was $3.1 billion during the quarter, slightly less than the $3.2 billion it recorded during the year-ago period.
On average, analysts expected its top line to come in at $2.9 billion. Also, the company's net income for the quarter was $112 million -- or $0.97 on a per-share basis -- compared to the net loss of $17 million and the net loss per share of $0.15 it reported during the third quarter of its fiscal year 2019.
Image source: Getty Images.
Analysts are often more interested in a company's adjusted earnings per share (EPS), and Community Health Systems also delivered on this front. The company's adjusted EPS during the third quarter was $0.18, compared to the $0.29 adjusted net loss per share it recorded during the prior-year quarter. On average, analysts expected a negative $0.16 adjusted loss per share for Community Health Systems during the third quarter.
Now what
Despite the issues it has encountered because of the pandemic, Community Health Systems has performed well this year, and after today's gains, the company's stock is up by 102.4% year to date. While the pandemic is far from over, the fact that Community Health Systems managed to blow earnings estimates out of the park in an otherwise challenging environment is impressive. Thus, it is not surprising that investors bid up shares of this healthcare stock today.
