Dive Brief:
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Tenet Healthcare Chairman and CEO Trevor Fetter announced Thursday he will step down by March 15, 2018, or earlier if Tenet chooses a successor.
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The company also announced it “has commenced a process to refresh the composition of its board” in order “to ensure that the board has the best mix of skills and experience to maximize the future value of the company.”
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Tenet is also adopting a shareholder rights program to discourage investors from acquiring a controlling interest in the system.
Dive Insight:
Fetter has been president and CEO of Tenet Healthcare since 2003, and has been with the company since 1995. Tenet is the third-largest investor-owned health system in the U.S. with 70 hospitals, and has been in the news a lot over the past month.
The Dallas-based company reported a $56 million second-quarter loss because of declining admissions. Tenet saw a 4.5% decrease in total admissions in the first half of the year. It has closed some hospitals and made strategic investments with an eye toward increasing cash on hand.
Last month, Tenet board members Randy Simpson and Matt Ripperger, who are with Tenet’s largest shareholder Glenview Capital Management, resigned. The resignations resulted from "irreconcilable differences regarding significant matters impacting Tenet and its stakeholders."
They added that Glenview “may evaluate other avenues to be a constructive owner of Tenet. Glenview remains fully committed to its ownership stake in Tenet and its desire to drive improved performance, culture and value.”
Days later, hedge fund Camber Capital purchased 5.7 million shares of Tenet Healthcare, which gives them a 5.7% stake in the system. The Boston-based hedge fund and its managing member Stephen DuBois have been involved in proxy fights with other companies. Camber purchased a 14.5% stake in Sequenom last year and advocated for operating changes, which ultimately led to the company being sold to LabCorp for $371 million.
Tenet's method for curbing efforts of controlling investment is a program that will allow shareholders to buy stock at a 50% decrease if an investor acquires 4.9% or more of the company's shares.