Mediclinic gains on Swiss, SA hospital growth

Johannesburg - Mediclinic International [JSE:MDC], South Africa’s largest private hospital owner, said full-year profit rose 9% after it expanded in Switzerland and its home market and benefited from a stronger Swiss franc.

Earnings per share excluding one-time items climbed to R4.08 a share in the year to March 31, the company said in a statement on Thursday. That was lower than the R4.45 average of seven analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg.

The hospital operator has been expanding in countries with growing demand for private healthcare.

Sales gained 16% to R35.2bn, with more than half the revenue coming from Switzerland, where the company bought Clinique La Colline in June last year for 130 million francs. Income from the Middle East rose to 12% of the total from 11% a year earlier.

Mediclinic shares fell 3.5% to R116.41 as at 09:26 in Johannesburg, paring the gain for the year to 16% and valuing the company at R101bn. Competitor Netcare [JSE:NTC] has advanced 11% this year.

The company had a R32m gain on foreign currency forward contracts during the year and raised the final dividend by 11% to 75.5 cents a share.