First-quarter revenue at AMN Healthcare Services Inc. (NYSE: AHS), the largest U.S. healthcare staffing firm, rose 4.9 percent to $226.4 million from $215.9 million in the first quarter of the previous year.

Revenue in the company’s nurse and allied healthcare operations rose 14.2 percent in the first quarter to $153.9 million on a year-over-year basis. The company said the increase was primarily related to growth in its travel nurse business.

However, first-quarter physician placement revenue fell 16.8 percent $9.0 million, and locum tenens revenue fell 9.5 percent to $63.5 million. Physician placement revenue rose 4 percent if the impact of a new revenue recognition accounting standard is excluded, the company reported.

First-quarter gross margin narrowed to 27.9 percent from 29.1 percent in the year-ago quarter. AMN reported first-quarter gross margin would have risen by 30 basis points if it excluded the impact of an actuarial-based workers’ compensation reserve adjustment and the adoption of a new revenue recognition accounting standard. The increase in gross margin would be due to an improvement in the gross margin in physician placement and locum tenens.

The company posted a first-quarter net income of $4.3 million, up 89.5 percent from net income of $2.3 million in the year-ago period.

Looking forward, AMN Healthcare forecast second-quarter revenue of between $229 million and $233 million, a year-over-year decline of between 0.7 percent and 2.4 percent.

AMN Healthcare Services Inc. (NYSE: AHS)
For the first quarter ended March 31, 2012, compared with the same period in 2011.
Revenue: $226.4 million, +4.9 percent
Net income: $4.3 million, +89.5 percent