Money Talk

Who's up and who's down

Down
Mount Sinai Medical Center, Miami Beach, FL
Rating: BB+
Outlook: Negative
Affected debt: $273.4 million
Agency: Standard & Poor's
Remarks: Outlook revised from stable on $12.9 million operating loss for 2006. While volumes improved, expense increases outpaced revenue increases, resulting in weaker margins.

Up
University of North Carolina Hospitals, Chapel Hill
Rating: Aa3
Outlook: Stable
Affected debt: $275 million
Agency: Moody's Investors Service
Remarks: Slightly leading market share in the state's Research Triangle coupled with dramatic four-year improvement in operating cash flow led to rating upgrade from A1.

Up
Berkshire Health Systems, Pittsfield, MA
Rating: BBB+
Outlook: Positive
Affected debt: $121 million
Agency: Standard & Poor's
Remarks: Outlook raised from stable thanks to consistent level of profitability during the past three to four years and improvement in utilization volume at both hospitals.

Down
Touro Infirmary, New Orleans, LA
Rating: Baa3
Outlook: Negative
Affected debt: $98.8 million
Agency: Moody's Investors Service
Remarks: Downgraded from Baa2 and retained negative outlook because of sizable 2006 operating losses and continuation of those losses to a higher than expected degree in the first eight months of 2007.

-Philip Betbeze