Community Health Systems Inc. (CHS), the owner of Porter hospital, is reporting a net income in the first quarter of 2012 of $75.474 million or 85 cents per diluted share, compared to $30.9 million or 35 cents in the fourth quarter and $61.324 million or 67 cents in the year-ago period.

The first-quarter results include a 48-cent per diluted share benefit from the resolution of an industry-wide government settlement; a 10-cent per diluted share charge to establish reserves “for certain legal matters”; and a 44-cent per diluted share loss from the early extinguishment of debt.

Excluding those items, net income in the first quarter was 91 cents per diluted share, CHS said.

“Our results for the first quarter of 2012 indicate a strong start to the year for (CHS) with a solid financial and operating performance,” CHS Chair, President, and CEO Wayne Smith said in a statement released on Friday. “We continued to show strong top-line growth with revenues up 11 percent on a consolidated basis and same-store revenues up 4.3 percent from a year ago.”

“We are especially encouraged by our volumes, which showed more favorable year-over-year trends than we experienced in 2011,” Smith added. “These results confirm our ability to drive revenues, improve our operating efficiencies, and manage our costs, with a shared goal across all of our markets to enhance the quality of local healthcare services.”

“We have continued to build a strong foundation for future growth through our focus on acquisitions,” Smith also said. “We have already added three new hospitals to our portfolio in 2012, reflecting our ability to identify and capitalize on opportunities in the marketplace.”

Net operating revenues were $3.3 billion, compared to $3.0 billion in the year-ago period, an increase of 11.6 percent.

Income from continuing operations was $99.7 billion or 85 cents per diluted share, compared to $91.6 million or 81 cents in the year-ago period.

The consolidated financial results reflect a 3.2 percent increase in total admissions and an 8.1 percent increase in total adjusted admissions compared to the year-ago period.

On a same-store basis, admissions decreased 2.3 percent while adjusted admissions increased 2.5 percent compared to the year-ago period.

On a same-store basis, net operating revenues increased 4.3 percent compared to the year-ago period.

Through its subsidiaries, CHS—headquartered in Franklin, Tenn.—currently owns, leases, or operates 134 hospitals (133 on Feb. 22) hospitals in 29 states with an aggregate of around 20,000 licensed beds.