COMMUNITY HOSPITALS GROUP, the healthcare company, said yesterday that it expects to learn within the next few weeks whether the Department of Trade and Industry will approve its agreed acquisition by BUPA, the privately owned health group.

BUPA launched a £230 million agreed cash bid for the company in April, but the bid was referred on competition grounds. BUPA, which still controls about 27 per cent of the shares in CHG. already owns 36 hospitals. After the acquisition goes ahead, it will own a further 21.

Alan Pilgrim, CHG’s chief executive, yesterday shrugged off uncertainties surrounding the deal with a 10 per cent increase in pre-tax profits: “We’ve had good results. We’re not sitting around waiting for the BUPA bid.”

The company announced a 12 per cent increase in the dividend to 16.2p, on profits of £19.4 million, up from £17.6 million last time.

Shares in CHG doubled in April from a low of 308½p on news of the bid, and they have remained above 500p even with the uncertainty of the referral to the Competition Commission.

The five-yearly reappraisal of net assets in June produced a value of 543p per share, up from 306p.

The commission is expected to deliver its conclusions to the DTI by early November.