The Pennant Group (Nasdaq: PNTG) is considering joint ventures and acquisitions following its $146.5 million acquisition of Amedisys home health and hospice assets. The considerations for joint venture and additional M&A come as Pennant continues to integrate the Amedisys assets – a process that is not without its challenges. The company has transitioned two of […] The post Pennant Considers JVs, M&A As Amedisys Integration Efforts Continue appeared first on Home Health Care News.
The Pennant Group (Nasdaq: PNTG) is considering joint ventures and acquisitions following its $146.5 million acquisition of Amedisys home health and hospice assets.
The considerations for joint venture and additional M&A come as Pennant continues to integrate the Amedisys assets – a process that is not without its challenges. The company has transitioned two of five operational waves onto its systems, and the integration will continue through October, leadership said on the company’s Q1 earnings call on Thursday.
“Despite the anticipated challenges of maintaining census during an EMR transition, lower seasonal admission trends over the holidays and severe weather events in January, we have successfully rebounded and increased total census above the levels at the time of acquisition,” Brent Guerisoli, CEO and chairman of Pennant, said. “Even as we continue to implement our systems and operating model and anticipate some additional disruption, we are pleased that the transition is progressing consistent with our expectations. The future is bright for Pennant in the Southeast.”
Integration of these home health and hospice branches is the company’s primary focus, John Gochnour, president and chief operating officer, said. As the integration process continues, the company will still consider a pipeline of home health and hospice tuck-in acquisitions and joint ventures with integrated health care systems, he said.
“As we find opportunities that meet our disciplined criteria and will not distract from our integration efforts, we expect to pursue them in the coming months,” Gochnour said.
Hospitals are receptive to joint ventures, Gochnour added.
“As hospitals have experienced some of the struggles that we’ve all experienced in health care from a labor standpoint, as their need to pull acuity and serve those most acute patients that can only receive care in that setting, they’ve seen the value of partnering with an expert partner,” he said. “And we think we’ve built a pretty impressive track record of being that partner.”
Eagle, Idaho-based Pennant is a holding company of independent operating subsidiaries that provide home health and hospice services, as well as senior living communities, in 17 states.
The company closed on its acquisition of home health, hospice and personal care agencies divested as part of UnitedHealth Group’s (NYSE: UNH) acquisition of Amedisys in October 2025. The deal included 54 locations in Tennessee, Georgia and Alabama.
In response to its 2025 acquisitions, Pennant leadership is placing heavy emphasis on developing its leadership.
“The large acquisitions we completed in 2025 called upon us to stretch our leadership recruitment and development muscles like never before,” Guerisoli said. “In 2025, we added 101 CEOs in training to our development program, and we have followed with 47 more in 2026 year to date. Also in 2025, we elevated 11 local CEOs and 24 other local C-level leaders. Our leadership pipeline remains robust and positions us well for additional growth in the future.”
In Q1, Pennant’s total revenue rang in at $285.4 million, a 36% increase year-over-year. Its home health and hospice segment accounted for $229.1 million, a 43% increase from Q1 2025.
Pennant leadership joined many other home-based care stakeholders in commending the second Trump administration’s focus on fraud, waste and abuse. Still, Gochnour warned that some of the tools the administration uses are “fairly blunt instruments” and encouraged a nuanced approach.
Efforts to root out bad actors actually represent a potential tailwind in some of the company’s markets.
“As there’s been, particularly for example, in California or Arizona, where there’s been aggressive enforcement action, that’s opened up new opportunities or reopened opportunities for our agencies that are long-standing parts of those communities that have delivered excellent clinical quality, deep compliant partnership,” Gochnour said. “So there are opportunities for us as bad actors are rooted out. And so we see that as a potential opportunity.”
Company leadership also remarked positively on the company’s payer partnerships, noting that Pennant has invested a significant sum in its payer relationship team and has advanced its conversations with “big payers.” Pennant also reported receiving positive Medicare-like reimbursement rates under its managed care contracts.
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