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August 8, 2008 -- There is a looming concern with brand name Compact Fluorescent Light (CFL) bulbs, and PureSpectrum, Inc. (Pink Sheets: PSPM) is one of a handful of lighting technology companies engineering to directly address the problem. According to James Wasserman of The Energy Consortium of Minneapolis, Minn., low Power Factor CFL bulbs could become a crucial issue for residential energy consumers and providers as incandescent bulbs are phased out during the next few years in accordance with the Energy Bill of 2007. Low Power Factor results in harmonic distortion and reduces power quality, and this energy imbalance could lead to extensive and expensive corrective actions by utility companies. High Power Factor standards have been set for linear fluorescent lighting in commercial and industrial settings, but Power Factor standards have not been elevated for the residential sector. Wasserman, a consultant and program manager for a utility company in Minnesota, expects that a power factor correction penalty could be added to residential energy bills in the future to offset the "dirty" or unproductive power created by the influx of millions of low Power Factor CFL bulbs. While this additional line item may surprise unsuspecting consumers, it would mean additional revenue for the utility companies. A perfect Power Factor rating is 1.0, and PureSpectrum's dimmable CFL ballast technology rated .974 in independent testing performed at a NVLAP-certified facility at the request of multiple prospective licensing partners. For a lighting manufacturer to achieve high Power Factor for an existing ballast design would require circuitry modifications and additional components, but high Power Factor is an inherent performance characteristic for all of PureSpectrum's ballast circuitry designs. "We analyzed the costing model being used by utilities in commercial and industrial settings and recognized immediately that a similar model will be necessary in the residential sector once there is a massive influx of CFL bulbs to replace incandescent bulbs," said PureSpectrum president and CEO Lee Vanatta, who also said PureSpectrum is designing a full product line of dimmable high Power Factor CFL bulbs. "As utility companies and lighting manufacturers have begun to digest the scope of the transition that is beginning to occur, they are realizing the importance of high Power Factor and the ripples this issue will cause. PureSpectrum has consistently approached the development of our technology from a universal perspective in the sense that we have created technology to satisfy the needs of manufacturers, end users and energy providers."
August 8, 2008 -- Grupo Aeroportuario (NASDAQGS: OMAB) Mexican airport operator Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte, S.A.B. de C.V., known as OMA, reports that total passenger traffic (terminal passengers) at its 13 airports decreased 4.4% in July 2008, as compared to July 2007. Domestic traffic in July 2008 decreased 5.0% (-19,936 passengers), compared to the prior year period. The airports that reported the most significant decreases in passenger traffic were Durango, Culiacan, Zihuatanejo, and Mazatlan. The airports with the most significant increases were Acapulco and San Luis Potosi, with the latter benefiting from the start of up of operations of Alma on July 1st. International traffic decreased 0.6% (-1,049 passengers) in July 2008, as compared to July 2007. Airports with the most significant reductions in international traffic volume were Culiacan, Mazatlan, Zihuatanejo, and Zacatecas. The principal traffic increases were in Monterrey and Tampico, with the latter reflecting a new American Eagle route to Dallas that opened in April 2008.
August 8, 2008 -- ITT Corporation (NYSE: ITT | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) announced it has received a follow-on fixed price award, valued up to $1 billion, for its CREW 2.1 Vehicle Receiver Jammers (CVRJs), vehicle-mounted systems designed to prevent the detonation of improvised explosive devices (IEDs). Under the contract, ITT will build and deliver up to 15,000 additional CREW 2.1 devices, plus spares and related equipment. An order was issued for the procurement of nearly 2,900 CREW 2.1 devices and valued at $187 million for delivery in 2008 and 2009. The contract was awarded by the U.S. Naval Sea Systems Command, and announced recently by the U.S. Department of Defense. The CVRJ program is helping the Department of Defense meet urgent system requirements and increased production demands to prevent the detonation of radio-controlled IEDs. These counter-IED devices will be mounted on various armored vehicles, and other military transport equipment, and deployed to current military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.
August 8, 2008 -- Robbins & Myers, Inc. (NYSE: RBN | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) announced that it has filed a Registration Statement on Form S-3 covering the potential sale of up to 2,994,254 of its shares that are owned by M.H.M. & Co., Ltd. Such 2,994,254 shares represent 8.62% of Robbins & Myers' outstanding shares and one-half of the total number of shares owned by M.H.M. & Co., Ltd. M.H.M. & Co., Ltd. has advised Robbins & Myers that it may offer the registered common shares from time to time in market or private transactions. Robbins & Myers will not receive any proceeds from the sale of shares by M.H.M. & Co., Ltd. M.H.M. & Co., Ltd. is a limited partnership, a substantial majority of which is owned by descendants of Maynard H. Murch or members of their families or trusts for the benefit of such family members. Maynard H. Murch was an early investor in Robbins & Myers. M.H.M. & Co., Ltd. has also advised Robbins & Myers that the sales that may be made are for diversification and tax planning purposes.
August 8, 2008 -- Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE: AIT | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) reported sales and earnings for its fourth quarter and fiscal 2008 year ended June 30. Fiscal 2008 sales increased 3.7% to a record $2,089,456,000 from $2,014,109,000 in fiscal 2007. Net income for the year also established a new high as it rose 11% to $95,456,000 versus $86,022,000 in the previous year. Earnings per share increased 13.5% to $2.19 compared with $1.93 last year. Net sales for the fourth quarter increased slightly to $529,745,000 from $528,025,000 in the comparable period a year ago. Net income for the quarter was $24,437,000 compared with $24,640,000 last year. The prior year quarter benefited from nonrecurring year end adjustments for self-insurance reserves. Fiscal 2008 fourth quarter earnings per share were $0.57 compared with $0.56 last year. Commenting on results, Applied Chairman & Chief Executive Officer David L. Pugh said, "We are pleased with our fiscal 2008 performance having hit our sixth consecutive year of record sales and earnings. Our active management of inventory and other assets, productivity improvements, and implementation of cost controls have again yielded strong financial results.
August 8, 2008 -- Landry's Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE: LNY | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) announced its results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2008. The Company's income from continuing operations for the quarter was $0.91 per share-diluted as compared to $0.44 reported last year. Revenues from continuing operations for the three months ended June 30, 2008, totaled $311.4 million, as compared to $308.0 million a year earlier, including $66.5 million and $66.6 million, respectively from the Golden Nugget properties. Income from continuing operations for the quarter was $14.0 million, compared to $9.2 million reported last year. Included in the current quarter amount is a non-cash gain of $2.9 million after-tax for the change in value of interest rate swaps partially offset by a non-cash impairment charge of $1.0 million after-tax, for a net of $0.12 per share-diluted. The prior comparable period includes $2.5 million after-tax expense for legal costs associated with the Company's stock option review and $4.1 million after-tax in expenses related to refinancing the Golden Nugget. Excluding the impact of these items, earnings per share-diluted from continuing operations were $0.79 for the quarter compared to $0.75 for the prior year. During the second quarter of 2008, consolidated pre-tax interest expense was $20.0 million compared to $14.0 million in the comparable period last year primarily due to additional borrowings associated with the June 2007 Golden Nugget refinancing as well as the 2.0% increase in the interest rate on the $400.0 million Senior Notes effective August 2007. Same store sales for the Company's restaurants were negative 2.5% for the quarter which includes the effect of the Easter holiday shift to the first quarter in 2008 from the second quarter in 2007. The Company's results benefited from a shift to higher margin amusement and entertainment revenues primarily at the Kemah Boardwalk. Same store sales for July were essentially flat.
Wall Street rebounded smartly Friday, shooting higher as a surge in the dollar and another plunge in oil prices eased some of investors' worries about losses at mortgage finance company Fannie Mae. The Dow Jones industrials soared more than 300 points, more than wiping out a big loss from the previous session, and all the major indexes had their best weekly gains since April. The session extended a streak of volatility that has seen the Dow making frequent triple-digit moves as investors reacted feverishly to news about the financial sector, corporate earnings and the economy. On Friday, the dollar, which has sagged along with the economy, reached its highest level against the euro since February, and in the process sent a wave of confidence through the stock market. And because the dollar's strength has contributed to the recent skid in oil prices, light, sweet crude dropped sharply again, falling $4.82 a barrel to settle at $115.20 on the New York Mercantile Exchange. That brought crude's decline over the past four weeks to more than $30. Investors see the drop in oil as a big boost for the economy, because it should allow consumers to spend more freely. For the moment, that has allowed the market to set aside nervousness about the financial sector, which is still contending with the fallout from the year-old credit crisis. Fresh financial worries surfaced Friday after Fannie Mae, the largest U.S. buyer and backer of home loans, reported a quarterly loss more than three larger than what Wall Street had expected and said it would slash its quarterly dividend to conserve cash. Philip S. Dow, managing director of equity strategy at RBC Dain Rauscher in Minneapolis, said that while the strength in the dollar and the resulting drop in oil were attracting buyers Friday, Wall Street's recent back-and-forth trading illustrates investors' great anxiety. "We live in a market where people react, they don't anticipate," he said. "So you've got this market that's kind on a seesaw every day reacting to news." The Dow rose 302.89, or 2.65 percent, to 11,734.32. The blue chips fell nearly 225 points Thursday after concerns about the financial sector, a weak showing by retailers in July and a spike in weekly unemployment claims; Friday's advance marked the seventh time in two weeks that the Dow rose or fell by triple digits. Broader indicators also rose sharply Friday. The Standard & Poor's 500 index advanced 30.25, or 2.39 percent, to 1,296.32 and the Nasdaq composite index advanced 58.37, or 2.48 percent, to 2,414.10. For the week, the Dow rose 3.6 percent, the S&P gained 2.9 percent and the technology-heavy Nasdaq jumped 4.5 percent.
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