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Tyson Foods turns it around Sunday, May 6, 2007 By Roby Brock Tyson Foods posted a $68 million profit in its second quarter after last year's comparable period when the protein giant stumbled to a $127 million loss. Sales in the second quarter of 2007 climbed to $6.5 billion versus $6.3 billion one year ago. The Springdale-based company had tightened its belt since last year's major losses, cutting more than $200 million in expenses. That cost reduction paid off as Tyson Foods reported profits in all segments of the company's business - poultry, pork, beef, and prepared foods. Don Tyson recovering from surgery The man who ran Tyson Foods for more than three decades and helped build it into the empire it is today - Don Tyson - is recovering from a major operation to remove a tumor from his liver. The family of Don Tyson confirmed Wednesday that Tyson is recovering from liver surgery at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. Tyson, 76, is the largest individual shareholder of Tyson Foods, controlling 70 million shares of the company's stock. Murphy Oil commits $5 million Murphy Oil Corp. made recent news with its "El Dorado Promise," the $50 million scholarship contribution for El Dorado High School students. Last week, Murphy Oil committed $5 million to the "El Dorado Forward" plan, which voters approved recently. The plan raises the city's sales tax by a penny for the next eight years for economic development. In all, community leaders expect $32 million to be generated by the tax. Murphy Oil's $5 million contribution will add to that total. Murphy Oil to buy gas station properties Murphy Oil has entered into an agreement with Wal-Mart to purchase parcels of property which it currently leases from the retail giant for its Murphy USA gasoline stations. Murphy USA's retail presence currently covers 21 states and nearly 1,000 stores. The transaction will add $315 million to Murphy Oil's capital expenditures over the two next fiscal years. Murphy Oil also says it will move forward with acquisitions of future site locations and it will close 47 current outlets. Baldor's profits climb Baldor Electric is already seeing the dividends of its acquisition of Rockwell's Dodge and Reliance divisions. The Fort Smith-based manufacturer saw a 106 percent increase in its sales and an 84 percent increase in its net income during the first quarter. Revenues grew to $395.7 million for the quarter, while profits topped $20.8 million. One year ago - minus the Rockwell companies - Baldor posted sales of $192.3 million and net income of $11.3 million. P.A.M. Transportation earnings fall P.A.M. Transportation Services reported net income of $1.2 million for the quarter ended March 31, down 77 percent from one year ago when the Tontitown-based trucking firm showed a profit of $5.2 million. Revenues excluding fuel charges were $87.5 million during the quarter versus $90.8 million in the previous year's comparable quarter. P.A.M. Transportation President Bob Weaver said several factors contributed to the earnings decline including soft freight demand, aggressive competition, rising fuel costs, and severe weather. J.B. Hunt announces dividend, stock buyback J.B. Hunt Transport Services announced a dividend and stock repurchase plan. The board of directors declared a regular quarterly dividend on its common stock of 9 cents per common share payable to stockholders of record on May 11. The dividend will be paid on May 29. J.B. Hunt's board also approved a $500 million stock repurchase plan that is expected to last over the next 12 months. The board had previously authorized up to $500 million in stock repurchases on April 21, 2005. Purchases authorized under that plan were completed in March. Judge denies poultry intervention request Federal Judge Gregory Frizzell denied Arkansas' attempt to intervene in a lawsuit between Oklahoma and several major poultry companies over pollution in the Illinois River watershed. Arkansas Attorney General Dustin McDaniel said he will consider an appeal of the ruling. Frizzell said Arkansas can file friend-of-the-court briefs urging the judge to decide on certain issues. Real estate trends indicate buyer's market Average home prices rose a modest 1 percent in March, while home sales tumbled nearly 10 percent from one year ago. Benton County's average home price led the state at $198,452, up 2.5 percent from one year ago. Pulaski County home prices fell nearly 4.5 percent from last year to $166,808. Statewide, the average price of a home was $150,168, a 0.95 percent increase in a year-over-year comparison. State tax collections rise in April State revenues showed strong gains in April with respect to last year's figures and forecast. Net available general revenues rose 5.9 percent to $551.1 million during the month. Individual income taxes climbed 4.7 percent above forecast and 10.2 percent above last year's collections to $425.4 million. Corporate income taxes closed the month 53.6 percent above forecast at $63 million. Gross receipts, which include sales and use taxes, posted a solid gain of 3.2 percent during April totaling $185.2 million. The positive numbers may dictate an upward revision of the state's $919 million budget surplus. Wal-Mart expands RFID usage Wal-Mart announced an expansion of its RFID (radio frequency identification) capability to 400 new stores, a move that could save consumers $22 million annually according to the retail giant. RFID is an inventory control system that has widespread applications to improve efficiencies within the supply chain. At an industry conference, Wal-Mart officials touted a 30 percent reduction in inventory shortfalls, as well as a reduction in excess inventory through its RFID usage. Wal-Mart plans to add its use of the technology in its pharmacy, grocery, and electronics divisions. Congressional panel limits industrial banks The U.S. House Financial Services Committee passed a bill this week barring companies like Wal-Mart and Home Depot from owning bank charters. The bill, which passed on a voice vote, heads to the House floor. Wal-Mart sparked controversy last year with its efforts to gain an industrial bank, also known as an industrial loan corporation (ILC). ILCs allow for limited banking authority, such as credit card processing. Wal-Mart has since withdrawn its ILC application. TIF developer says court ruling helps Commercial property developer Bruce Burrow says that last week's Arkansas Supreme Court ruling on tax increment financing districts (TIFs) strengthens their legality and will not deter his plans for a major mall development in North Little Rock. Burrow claims that the high court's ruling legitimizes TIFs. "They came out and said that tax increment financing is a constitutional issue that can be utilized for development," said Burrow. The mall developer expects to begin site preparation on the $150 million Shoppes at North Hills in North Little Rock before the end of the year. "We're moving forward. We hope to close in August," he explains. "We've spent a lot of money to date without closing on the ground. It's a deal we're going to do." Mississippi County plant is acquired A Mississippi County factory that was in Chapter 11 bankruptcy has been bought by a California firm. Kagome Corp. has acquired Creative Foods, a food processing plant making soybean oil-based products like margarine. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Kagome officials told locals that they plan to preserve the 200 current jobs at the plant and could expand. Kagome has a processing and packaging facility in California that makes healthy fruit juice products, as well as prepared foods for Taco Bell and Pizza Hut. $700 million contract awarded for Arkansas power plant Southwestern Electric Power Co. (SWEPCO) awarded a $700 million engineering, procurement, and construction contract to The Shaw Group of Baton Rouge. The contract is for a new $1.3 billion, 600-megawatt, coal-fueled power plant at Fulton in Hempstead County. The SWEPCO plant is expected to create up to 1,400 construction jobs and should be completed by mid-2011. Stephens opens desk in New York, Chicago Stephens Inc. opened trading desks in New York and Chicago on Monday for institutional investors. The Little Rock-based investment banking firm already has a trading desk in Boston and will also beef up staff there, according to the company. Atlas shows strength in shale play Atlas Pipeline Partners, a transmission and processing company with ties to Fayetteville Shale player Southwestern Energy, announced results in its recent earnings that showed a 15 percent spike in natural gas volume. Its interstate pipeline called NOARK, which carries gas from Arkansas to Oklahoma, accounted for a large percentage of that increase and could result in an expansion of the transmission system. Ed Cohen, Atlas Chairman and CEO disclosed, "In fact, our NOARK pipeline system is at or near full utilization. As a result, plans are in process for substantial increases in the capacity of this pipeline." ------- Roby Brock, a freelance journalist based in Little Rock, writes weekly for the Arkansas News Bureau. His weekly television program airs at 10 p.m. Sundays in Central and Northwest Arkansas. His e-mail address is roby@talkbusiness.net; his Web site address is www.talkbusiness.net. |
