Business in brief: SEC investigates HCA’s finances

Washington – The Securities and Exchange Commission has opened a probe into whether the largest hospital company in the world, Hospital Corporation of America, violated securities law by manipulating its books and records, according to documents and people familiar with the investigation.

The investigation has been focusing, at least in part, on HCA’s London subsidiary and whether the company fabricated tens of thousands of payments for phantom nursing shifts, according to the documents and people familiar with the matter. The SEC has been coordinating with investigators at Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs in London, according to the documents.

HCA runs more than 160 facilities across the United States and in London and treats millions of people a year. In 2006, HCA, then a public company, was bought by a consortium including its management, the family of former Senate majority leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., and three major financial firms for about $33 billion in the largest leveraged buyout ever at the time.

Yum Brands posts a profit

Louisville, Ky. – Robust sales in China helped chain-restaurant operator Yum Brands Inc. post 18 percent growth in its third-quarter profit, easily beating Wall Street forecasts.

The company that owns Taco Bell, KFC and Pizza Hut also raised its forecast for its annual earnings per share on Tuesday.

Lower commodity expenses and general cost-cutting helped offset a 5 percent drop in U.S. revenue.

Yum’s net income for the three months that ended Sept. 5 rose to $334 million, or 69 cents per share, compared with $282 million, or 58 cents per share, a year earlier. Excluding one-time items, it earned 70 cents per share.

Yum, whose brands also include Long John Silver’s and A&W All-American Food, reported sales growth of 11 percent in mainland China and 4 percent in its separate international division.

Media company goes bankrupt

Toronto – Canwest Global Communications Corp. entered bankruptcy protection on Tuesday after reaching a deal to restructure its debt with lenders.

Canada’s biggest media company had been unable to make interest payments for months on $4 billion Canadian ($3.8 billion) in debt and negotiated several extensions with creditors.

The media giant had reached an agreement with a key group of lenders to give them a stake in the restructured company, leaving current shareholders with just 2.3 percent, and Ontario’s Superior Court of Justice approved the request to enter protection.