UNION MEDICAL CENTER
1. Target Overview & Investment Thesis
UNION MEDICAL CENTER is a 15-bed suburban community hospital in UNION, SC with $30.0M in net patient revenue and a 4.3% operating margin. The hospital serves a payer mix of 23.7% Medicare, 9.6% Medicaid, and 66.7% commercial.
Thesis: Turnaround. Our ML models identify $2.2M in annual EBITDA improvement potential from RCM optimization across 5 levers, lifting margin from 4.3% to 11.7% (+736bps).
| Net Revenue HCRIS | $30.0M |
| Current EBITDA COMPUTED | $1.3M |
| Operating Margin COMPUTED | 4.3% |
| Occupancy HCRIS | 30.9% |
| Revenue / Bed COMPUTED | $2.0M |
| Net-to-Gross HCRIS | 24.5% |
| Distress Probability ML | 51.7% |
2. Market Context & Competitive Position
SC has 85 Medicare-certified hospitals with a median operating margin of 1.3%. The target's margin of 4.3% places it above the state median. Among 1814 size-comparable peers (8-30 beds), the median margin is -7.0%. The target performs in line with or above peers.
3. RCM Performance Analysis — Comparable Hospitals
Comps selected by bed count (8-30), prioritizing same-state peers. 1814 hospitals in the comp set.
| Hospital | State | Beds | Revenue | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UNION MEDICAL CENTER (Target) | SC | 15 | $30.0M | 4.3% |
| DANA-FARBER CANCER INSTITUTE | MA | 30 | $1.88B | -35.1% |
| FRED HUTCHINSON CANCER CENTER | WA | 20 | $1.17B | -50.0% |
| MERCY WALWORTH HOSPITAL | WI | 25 | $616.4M | 4.4% |
| CORYELL MEMORIAL HOSPITAL | TX | 25 | $305.9M | -1.5% |
| WENATCHEE VALLEY HOSPITAL | WA | 11 | $277.5M | -4.9% |
| TAHOE FOREST HOSPITAL | CA | 25 | $264.3M | 13.0% |
| PORTERVILLE DEVELOPMENTAL CENT | CA | 17 | $193.6M | -6.0% |
| CUYUNA REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER | MN | 25 | $180.8M | -4.0% |
4. Predicted Improvement Opportunities
Improvement targets set at P75 of comparable peers with 60% gap closure assumption. Coefficients calibrated to published research bands. Total EBITDA uplift: $2.2M (736bps margin improvement).
| Lever | Current | Target | EBITDA Impact | Margin | Ramp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net Collection Rate | 93.5% | 97.0% | $631K | +210bp | 18mo |
| Cost to Collect | 4.5% | 2.5% | $600K | +200bp | 12mo |
| Denial Rate Reduction | 12.0% | 6.5% | $594K | +198bp | 12mo |
| A/R Days Reduction | 5200.0% | 3800.0% | $365K | +122bp | 9mo |
| Clean Claim Rate | 88.0% | 96.0% | $19K | +6bp | 6mo |
5. EBITDA Bridge
| Current EBITDA | $1.3M |
| + RCM Uplift | +$2.2M |
| Pro Forma EBITDA | $3.5M |
| Current Margin | 4.3% |
| Pro Forma Margin | 11.7% |
| WC Released (1x) | $1.2M |
6. Returns Analysis — Scenario Matrix
5-year hold, 5.5x leverage, 3% organic growth, 10%/yr debt paydown. Base case uses 100% of predicted RCM uplift. Bull case: 130% uplift at lower entry. Bear case: 50% uplift at higher entry.
| Scenario | Entry | Exit | Equity In | Equity Out | MOIC | IRR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Base Case | 10.0x | 10.0x | $2.0M | $30.6M | 15.41x | 72.8% |
| Base (11x exit) | 10.0x | 11.0x | $2.0M | $34.3M | 17.28x | 76.8% |
| Bull Case | 9.0x | 11.0x | $1.8M | $42.3M | 23.64x | 88.2% |
| Bull (12x exit) | 9.0x | 12.0x | $1.8M | $46.6M | 26.08x | 92.0% |
| Bear Case | 11.0x | 10.0x | $2.2M | $18.9M | 8.66x | 54.0% |
| Bear (11x exit) | 11.0x | 11.0x | $2.2M | $21.5M | 9.85x | 58.0% |
7. Key Risks & Mitigants
| Severity | Risk Factor | Mitigant |
|---|---|---|
| Medium | Low occupancy | At 30.9%, fixed costs are spread over fewer patient days. Mitigant: volume growth is an additional upside lever not modeled in base case |
| High | Elevated distress probability | Model estimates 51.7% probability of financial distress. Mitigant: distressed entry pricing (7-9x) compensates for risk |
8. Data Sources & Methodology Appendix
Data Sources
- CMS HCRIS Cost Reports (Medicare-certified hospitals)
- CMS Medicare Utilization (DRG-level volumes)
- CMS Chronic Conditions (county-level disease prevalence)
- HCRIS multi-year trend data (financial time series)
Comparable Selection
- 1814 hospitals with 8-30 beds
- Same-state prioritization (n=8)
- Comp margins: P25=-20.0% / P50=-7.0% / P75=2.5%
Bridge Methodology
- Targets: P75 of comparable peers (60% gap closure)
- Denial: avoidable share = 35% of delta × NPR
- AR: bad debt coefficient = $0.65 per day per $1K NPR
- NCR: 60% coefficient on collection rate improvement
- CDI: 0.75% of Medicare revenue per 0.01 CMI point
Returns Assumptions
- Leverage: 5.5x entry (84.6% debt / 15.4% equity)
- Organic growth: 3% annual EBITDA growth
- Debt paydown: 10% of principal per year
- Hold period: 5 years
Generated by SeekingChartis on April 26, 2026. All predictions use public data only. Confidence intervals calibrated via split conformal prediction (90% coverage target). This memo is for informational purposes and does not constitute investment advice.