Athenahealth, Inc.

Athenahealth, Inc. (ATHN - Snapshot Report) is operating in an industry that is not just holding up in this tough environment, but actually doing well. The company's third-quarter results were ahead of estimates, and the analyst community is bullish on the next-year period, projecting 79% earnings growth.

Company Description

Athenahealth, Inc. provides Internet-based business services for physician practices in the United States. Its services are based upon the company's proprietary Internet based software programs. Athenahealth was founded in 1997 and has a market cap of $1.28 billion.

Athenahealth stepped up and delivered solid third-quarter results on Nov 5 that were ahead of analyst estimates. Revenue was up 35% from last year to $35.4 million. Income jumped to $6.1 million from $4.2 million, producing earnings of 11 cents per share, 2 cents ahead of analyst estimates.

CEO Speak

CEO Jonathan Bush provided some color to the company's results, saying that, "The third quarter was Athena's strongest as a publicly traded company."

Analyst Estimates

After the solid quarter the analyst community boosted their estimates, with the current-year increasing to 2 cents per share to 37 cents per share. The next-year estimate is bullish, pegged at 66 cents, a 79% earnings growth projection.

The Chart

Shares of ATHN have been on a big rally since bottoming out just above $19 in late November. Since then, this stock has risen as high as $39, an impressive short-term gain of almost 100%. The MACD indicator also appears to be crossing over, a sign of short-term strength. Take a look at the chart below.