Respirate

Amedisys: A Great Short Term Trading Opportunity

David, you make excellent, very convincing points, and I'll take another honest look at AMED. The easy money ($30 to $34) has already been made since yesterday's initial knee-jerk reaction to the news.

It may be good for the longer term, until "investors regain their confidence". Some analysts opine that it was due for a pullback in light of the price nearly doubling from Mar09 lows, a powerful move for a company in this sector. Uncertainty regarding future Medicare reimbursement rates (also the basis for insurer rates) may also hold it back for a time. Still, this may be an attractive entry point.

Thanks again for the good information. -- R

Amedisys: A Great Short Term Trading Opportunity

David - Thank you for the numbers on Amedisys, which are very favorable for the company. I also commend you for bringing the situation to readers' attention. I was merely sharing my concern as an individual investor. Your guess that I have a short position in the stock is incorrect.

The fact that analysts have raised earnings guidance is somewhat irrelevant, as so many of them simply echo words from the companies they cover. Agree that the 9/7 presentation could bump the share price.

I hope you do very well with it. I don't trust management at Amedisys and will pass. Thanks again.

-- R No current AMED pos'n.

Amedisys: A Great Short Term Trading Opportunity

It's tempting to jump in to this stock on the assumption that "high strung, ambitious officers" are the cause of the problem. Unfortunately there's enough doubt raised by prior questions regarding AMED's to avoid the leap.

The steep decline in the share price due to the departures was exacerbated by seeds planted previously. A year ago (8/08) CitronResearch reported the following: "Citron has been interviewing Amedisys’s former employees in an attempt to confirm or disprove the implications of accounting red flags. The results were startling. Some points that were consistently reported by former employees:
- Amedisys pressured employees to manipulate OASIS scores in order to increase billings.
- Local offices would receive calls from headquarters to influence the scores on Medicare patients. (to justify higher billing).
- The billing system is set up for failure and there are no checks and balances. "

I wish you well on this as a short term play, but this company's accounting (and the questionable history of at least one corporate officer) makes many investors distinctly uncomfortable.