The acquisition of Pennant Group (NASDAQ: PTNG) home healthcare provider, sold as part of the acquisition of UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) Amedisys, is expected to close within the first few weeks of October.
With the end of the contract, the Pennant has created a similar presence to the company's presence in the Pacific Northwest and California as it was “prepared” to strengthen its southeast footprint, the company's leader said on a panel at the 2025 Jeffreys Healthcare Services Conference on Monday.
“This massive acquisition opportunity will allow us to build a service centre to support our operations in the Southeast,” said Brent Gerisorli, CEO of Pennant. “With these new agencies in Tennessee, Alabama and Georgia, shared service arrangements and the service centers here, we are really ready to continue expanding in the Southeast over time.”
Pennant has agreed to acquire hospice institutions worth between $113 million and $147 million sold by UnitedHealth and Amedisys.
Gerisori expressed her confidence in the acquisition of Amedisys/UnitedHealth last year due to her experience acquiring signature healthcare on her home assets.
“The (signature deal) is similar, the platform is a little smaller, but it's the same,” Gerisoli said. “In the Pacific Northwest, there was a great performance tactic to be a powerful multiple leader, so we went out there, brought folding the operation, infused culture and created opportunities for local leaders.
Pennant's acquisition strategy focuses on investing in C-Suite leaders, which, according to Chief Operating Officer of Chief Operating Officer of Chief Gochnour, can distinguish between operations at the community level and drive organic growth.
“It's an incredible portfolio. It has strong operating operators and strong assets, but I think it's worth adding by bringing an innovative operating model,” Gochnour said of the acquisition of Amedisys/UnitedHealth. “We believe that this portfolio has real opportunities, just to reach typical performance, but also to grow. We really believe that our opportunities are in creating the right leadership and training and nurturing existing leaders, and distinguishing ourselves in each of these local communities.”
Pennants are “pretty agnostic” in the service line it invests in and gerisori whether it's at home hygiene, hospice or senior living. The company focuses on engaging opportunities with potential acquisition targets that have strong leaders in place. The company's acquisition strategy includes peer accountability and cluster models, Brian Mills, vice president of acquisitions, said at a future meeting of Home Healthcare News.
The company's agnosticism and belief that the reimbursement rate is cyclical, which is why Pennants did not move away from the acquisition of Amethysis/United Health after the US Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced its 2026 home health payment rules.
The overall service line approach is agnostic, but the company aims to invest more and more in personal and mandatory care. Currently, the company is responsible for six operations with independent private duty services and five other operations that provide private duty services as part of the overall service.
“We have discovered that there are many opportunities in the private obligation aspect,” Gochnour said. “We think that's an important part of the care continuum. I think it adds a lot of value for the touch we give along with the patient. It's the area where we've cultivated leaders and we've formed groups that use the organization's dollars to invest and grow.”
