Cooper University Health Care is boasting yet another credit rating upgrade: an A+ from Fitch Ratings. The score is the highest in the Camden-based health care provider’s 137-year history. 

Announced Feb. 15, the Fitch score follows other recent bumps – to an A3 from Moody’s Investor Service in January 2023 and to an A- from S&P Global Ratings in November 2022.

Cooper added that the Fitch grade represents a double, or two-level, upgrade over its 2022 rating. 

“This A+ rating marks a remarkable turnaround for Cooper University Health Care from near bankruptcy at the turn of the century to today’s strong financial position,” George Norcross III, chairman of the Cooper UHC’s board of trustees, said in a statement. “This achievement is a testament to the commitment of the thousands of Cooper team members committed to our mission.” 

In its ratings details, Fitch noted, “The ‘A+’ rating reflects Cooper’s very strong liquidity position, which has nearly doubled over the last five years, driven by a five-year trend of solid operating performance. Cooper’s operating EBITDA margin averaged 9.8% despite significant and persistent sector headwinds.” 

Fitch added that Cooper’s operating performance “has been buoyed” by strategic initiatives such as its “cancer care affiliation with MD Anderson, health system partnerships for key service lines and investments in its outpatient footprint.” 

“These initiatives continue to expand Cooper’s market reach and further its transformation from a stand-alone Academic Medical Center to a regional health system,” Fitch added. 

On the horizon

The agency also said it expects Cooper to continue expanding its market. Notably, with its planned merger with Cape Regional Health System as well as its new $150 million outpatient campus at Moorestown Mall — the health network’s largest outpatient facility to date (click here to see a slideshow of the facility). 

Cooper co-CEO Kevin O’Dowd added that “Fitch’s A+ rating validates Cooper’s financial strength, prudent growth strategies, and the tremendous work by Cooper’s dedicated team members.” 

Co-CEO Anthony Mazzarelli also celebrated the upgrade, saying, “Fitch’s rating is another indicator that our focus on becoming an exceptional academic health system by managing our finances in a way that allows us to continue to grow to meet increasing demand from patients seeking the higher level of care our experts provide is the correct strategy.”