Moody's Investors Service upgraded to A2 from A3 its rating on the Blanchard Valley Regional Health Center, located in Findlay, Ohio.
The move affects $108 million of bonds. The outlook is stable.
Moody's lifted its rating in light of the provider's dominant market position - it enjoys a 76% market share as the only full service hospital in Hancock County - as well as its strong cash flow and revenue growth since 2009.
The system is also strengthened by strong management, "manageable" debt structure risks, and modest capital needs over the next several years, analysts said.
The hospital has a high debt position in part due a large capital project that was completed in 2007. Debt service coverage, however, remains strong at 4.1 times, Moody's said.
"The hospital's moderate size is a challenge to achieving a higher rating; over the longer term, significant growth in revenue, reduced debt and further improvement in overall metrics would warrant consideration for a rating upgrade," Moody's analyst Lisa Martin said in the upgrade report.
