The number of hospital and health system partnership transactions continues to climb, with a total of 50 transactions announced in the first half of 2018, according to a recent analysis by Kaufman Hall.

Activity remains particularly strong among not-for-profit hospitals and health systems, with 16 of 21 transactions announced in the second quarter involving acquisitions by such organizations, compared to five transactions by for-profit acquirers. When combined with first-quarter results, more than 76 percent of deals announced in the first half of 2018 involve not-for-profit acquirers, while less than 24 percent involve for-profit acquirers.

“Not-for-profit hospital and health system leaders nationwide are moving aggressively to broaden their organizations’ base and expand their presence, extending capabilities across larger geographies in order to address continued uncertainty in the industry,” said Anu Singh, managing director at Kaufman Hall. “Partnerships provide them the size and enhanced positioning within their markets to help ensure that these legacy organizations can continue their missions of providing vital care in the communities they serve.”

Here are four additional findings from the report:

• Two transactions announced in the second quarter are among larger organizations with revenues between $500 million to $1 billion.

• Three transactions announced in the second quarter involved religious-affiliated organizations acting as acquirers, and one involved a religious-affiliated target.

• Three transactions involved academic health systems acquiring other organizations.

• Three deals involved less than fully integrated transactions with the establishment of management services agreements.

—Adapted from “Hospital Merger and Acquisition Activity Continues to Rise, According to Kaufman Hall Analysis,” Kaufman, Hall & Associates, July 12, 2018.