Business today

USAA FACES CLASS-ACTION SUIT: Tampa attorney Jonathan Alpert filed what he says is the first class-action whistleblower suit in the country. The case is a compilation of allegations from former USAA employees who accuse the insurance giant of retaliating when they complained about problems in the company. The issue first surfaced six weeks ago when former USAA employee Paula Brooks Tarr filed suit alleging she was forced out after complaining that the company was unfairly denying consumer claims. In the revised and expanded suit filed Thursday in circuit court in Tampa, Tarr is joined by fellow plaintiffs Mark Leonard, Loretta Williams, Mary Lee and Carla Childs. Paul Berry, a spokesman in USAA's San Antonio, Texas, headquarters, vowed to "aggressively defend the interest of our members and our fine reputation against these baseless allegations."

GERDAU AMERISTEEL HAS PROFIT: The newly formed Gerdau Ameristeel Corp. said it had net income of $8.5-million, or 4 cents a share, on revenues of $390.8-million for the fourth quarter. The company, which has its operational headquarters in Tampa, makes steel bars and other products by recycling scrap steel. It was created in October by the merger of the U.S. and Canadian steel operations of Co-Steel Inc. of Canada and Gerdau S.A. of Brazil. For the full year, the company had net income of $33.1-million, or 15 cents a share, on revenues of $1.7-billion. The results are reported as though the merger had occurred at the beginning of the period.

ENRON MAY MOVE HEADQUARTERS: Enron Corp., the former energy trader that owes creditors more than $50-billion as part of its bankruptcy, is considering moving out of its headquarters in a Houston skyscraper to cut costs.

COKE TO LAY OFF 1,000: Coca-Cola Co. plans to fire about 1,000 people as the company combines its three main North American units in an effort to reduce costs and boost efficiency. About half of the job cuts will take place in Atlanta, where the company is based. The beverage maker has about 12,000 employees in the United States.

VERIZON APPEALS RULING: Verizon Communications Inc. is appealing a federal judge's order forcing Internet service providers to reveal the identity of any subscriber suspected of downloading pirated songs and movies. Verizon also asked that the order be put on hold until its appeal is heard. A ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia on the matter may not come for months. The Recording Industry Association of America, which sued to force Verizon to supply the name of a customer who in one day transmitted more than 600 songs by the Beatles, Billy Joel and other artists, said it would fight any attempt to overthrow the Jan. 21 ruling by U.S. District Judge John D. Bates.

LINCARE SHARES FALL: Lincare Holdings Inc. said it did not know why there was unusual movement in the company's stock Thursday. Shares in the Clearwater home oxygen provider dropped $3.12 to $28.53 on nearly 10 times the average daily volume. Lincare said to its knowledge, there have been no adverse developments in the business or any unusual inquiries by regulatory agencies. Medicare and Medicaid account for 62 percent of the company's revenues. Lincare is scheduled to make its next earnings report on Feb. 10.

CANNONDALE IN BANKRUPTCY: Cannondale Corp., a bicycle and motorcycle maker that reported 11 straight quarterly losses, filed for bankruptcy protection after saying it would close its motorsports division and sell assets. The asset sale to a Connecticut private equity firm would be subject to bankruptcy court approval.

NET LOSS AT MUTUAL FUNDS: Investors last year pulled more money out of stock mutual funds than they put into them, a result not seen in 14 years. Stock mutual funds posted net outflows of $27.10 billion, or 0.9 percent of their average assets, according to the Investment Company Institute, a trade association for the mutual fund industry. The last year when funds had annual outflows was 1988, when shareholders cashed in 8 percent of funds' assets.

DOW CHEMICAL LOSS WIDENS: Dow Chemical Co., the largest U.S. chemical maker, plans to cut as many as 4,000 jobs after the company's fourth-quarter loss widened on costs to settle lawsuits over asbestos. The net loss was $809 million, or 89 cents a share, compared with $37 million, or 4 cents, in the last quarter of 2001. Sales rose 9 percent to $6.91 billion.

Earnings

Danka Business Systems PLC: Despite an 11.8 percent decline in revenues, the St. Petersburg distributor and servicer of office equipment saw its net income reach a profit during the quarter ended Dec. 31. But after subtracting dividends paid to preferred shareholders, holders of common stock suffered a net loss of 2 cents per share.

Paradyne Networks Inc.: The Largo maker of high-speed Internet access equipment swung to a net loss in the quarter ended Dec. 31 while revenue plummetted 54 percent amid continued weak capital spending by telecommunications companies. The company's results for the quarter included a $6.7-million noncash goodwill impairment charge and a $2.3-million restructuring charge, which was larger than the $1.8-million charge projected in December.

Boeing Co.: Strong results from its defense business helped it remain profitable in the quarter ended Dec. 31 despite 13 percent lower revenues amid the commercial airplane market downturn. The company cautioned that 2003 revenues will continue to decline sharply as the aviation slump continues.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.: The company reversed a fourth-quarter net loss, as the cruise business rebounded from a slump triggered by the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

© 2006 • All Rights Reserved • Tampa Bay Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111

Contact the Times | Privacy Policy
Standard of Accuracy | Terms, Conditions & Copyright