Second-quarter revenue at Cross Country Healthcare Inc. (NASDAQ: CCRN) fell 28.2% year over year to $540.7 million, but gross margin improved. The decrease was in its nurse and allied staffing segment; physician staffing revenue surged.

“We are pleased that second-quarter results met or exceeded our guidance ranges, reflecting strong execution in an environment where health systems remain focused on managing contingent labor spend,” President and CEO John Martins said in a press release.

The Boca Raton, Florida-based healthcare staffing firm reported physician staffing revenue jumped 104.9% to $45.3 million while nurse and allied staffing revenue fell 32.3% to $495.4 million.

Physician staffing revenue growth was fueled by an increase in volume in several specialties.

Meanwhile, Cross Country’s nurse and allied staffing revenue fell as the average number of field contract personnel on a full-time equivalent basis fell to 11,385 from 13,494 in the year-ago quarter. In addition, revenue per full-time equivalent per day fell to $474 from $591 in the second quarter of last year.

“As expected, travel bill rates continued to normalize throughout the quarter and the number of professionals on assignment declined as clients continue to right-size their needs,” the company reported in a press release.

The second quarter includes restructuring costs of $913,000 while the second quarter of 2022 included a restructuring benefit of $1.1 million.

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Guidance

Cross Country forecast third-quarter revenue would be down year over year between 29% and 31%.

Share price and market cap

Shares in Cross Country were down 16.0% to $22.25 as of 1:15 p.m. Eastern time; they were 9.3% above their 52-week low, according to FT.com. The company had a market cap of $952.2 million.