Mash Unit? Plenty of Moves at Health-Care Companies

• Mary Chaput is the new CFO of American Healthways Inc., a provider of care services to health plans, physicians, and hospitals. She replaces Henry Herr, who has been chief financial officer at the Nashville-based company since its founding in 1981. Herr announced his intentions to retire at the end of the fiscal year, but agreed to stay on as a board member and consultant upon the transition’s completion. Chaput joins the company from ClinTrials Research Inc., a publicly traded global-contract research organization, where she served in the same position. In addition, Chaput is a co-founder of Paragon Ventures Group, a management consulting firm, and has also held senior level financial positions at General Electric Co. and Pharmaco. Chaput holds an MBA from State University of New York in Albany, and is a graduate of the GE Financial Management Program.

Chaput jumps to a company whose earnings are actually beating expectations. Earlier this month, fourth-quarter profits at American Healthways more than doubled to $1.0 million (10 cents a share), compared to earnings of $401,000 (5 cents a share) in the same period last year. The company was expected to earn 7 to 11 cents a share for the period, with a consensus expectation of 9 cents a share, according to research firm Thomson Financial/First Call. Revenues at American Healthways jumped 48 percent to $22 million. Company management expects first-quarter and full-year 2002 profits to meet or exceed current analysts’ consensus estimates. For all of 2002, managers at the health-care specialist expect a profit of 78 cents to 81 cents a share, compared to analysts’ current consensus view of 79 cents a share.

• Managers at Denver-based natural-gas producer Western Gas Resources Inc. named William Krysiak chief financial officer. The company has not exactly rushed to fill the post, which has been vacant since 1993. Krysiak joined Western Gas in 1985, and went on to become controller and VP of finance. He received a B.S. in business administration from Colorado State University, and is a certified public accountant

  In another big management shuffle at Western Gas, CEO Lanny Outlaw, announced his intention to retire at the end of the month. Peter Dea, the former chairman and chief executive of Barrett Resources Corp., a natural gas producer, will become president and chief executive.

  Barrett Resources was acquired in early August by Williams Companies, a natural-gas storage and transportation company. Dea was also named director.

  Second-quarter revenues at Western Gas Resources jumped to $887 million, a 38 percent increase from the same quarter a year prior. Net income shot up to $30 million, a substantial increase from the $11 million posted for the same period in 2000. Management attributed the increase to higher gas prices, increased production, and the sale of Pinnacle Gas Treating Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary. EBITDA, excluding asset sales and non-cash changes, increased 87 percent from the same period in 2000, to $141 million for the quarter.

• Officials at Bethesda, Md.-based Hanger Orthopedic Group Inc., an orthotics and prosthetics services company, appointed George McHenry as chief financial officer. McHenry replaces Richard Stein, who left the company to pursue other opportunities. This is not the only finance team adjustment at Hanger. Managers also announced the appointment of Glenn Lohrmann to the secretary and controller positions. In addition, Jason Owen was promoted to treasurer.

  Prior to joining Hanger, McHenry served for 14 years as CFO ofUS Vision Inc., a retailer of optical products and services. He has also been employed at both Deloitte & Touche and KPMG.

  McHenry will need to get down to brass tacks in his new assignment. Hanger’s operating income, before non-recurring asset write-offs, restructuring, and integration charges, declined for the second quarter to $15 million, from $17 million the year prior. In the second quarter, the company recognized a non-cash $8.2 million charge to account for the proposed sale of its manufacturing business, and a $3.7 million charge for restructuring costs and other asset write-offs. The company posted a second quarter net loss of $6 million, down considerably from $1.2 million in income during the same period the previous year.

• Heber Maughan has been named finance chief and VP of finance at Paradigm Medical Industries Inc., a Salt Lake City-based developer of surgical and diagnostic equipment. He succeeds John Hemmer, who was named SVP. Maughan was most recently CFO and controller at Peterbilt of Utah Inc., a truck dealership. He has also held various financial management positions at First Health Strategies Inc., and Standard Optical. Maughan is a certified public accountant, and a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and Utah Association of Certified Public Accountants.

Paradigm Medical reported a net loss of $1.86 million, (14 cents per fully diluted share), in the second quarter, down slightly from the net loss of $2.1 million (19 cents per fully diluted share), for the same period in 2000.