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February 28, 2011
Axia chosen as manager for state's new broadband network
Massachusetts has picked a Canadian telecommunications company to manage a new $71.6 million broadband network that's being built to deliver the Internet to underserved areas of the state.
Axia NetMedia Corporation of Calgary has signed an agreement to operate the network for 10 years. The state-sponsored Massachusetts Technology Collaborative is responsible for building the network, and will retain ownership of it.
The new network will deliver Internet service to western and north central Massachusetts through more than 1,300 miles of fiber optic cable, connecting more than 120 communities. The federal government is providing $45.4 million to build the network, with the state government contributing an additional $26.2 million.
Construction of the network is to be completed by June of 2013.
Posted by globebusiness at 12:54 PM | Comments (0)
Rosengren: Stress tests will help prepare for worse case scenarios
Eric S. Rosengren, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, today warned regulators and banks against relying too much on historical patterns to assess future risks to the financial system, instead calling for wider use of so-called stress tests to forecast and prepare for worst case scenarios.
Speaking at Boston University, Rosengren said misplaced faith in history created "myths" that helped lead to the financial meltdown that pushed the US economy to the brink of a second Great Depression. For example, since national home prices had not declined for decades, few financial institutions prepared for such an eventuality as they bought and sold mortgage-backed securities during the last housing boom.
Regulators, meanwhile, bought into the same myth, and did not require banks to set aside enough money to cover losses if the assumption proved wrong. The result: heavy losses for banks, insufficient capital to cover those losses, and the near-freezing of credit that sent the economy into a tailspin.
"When these sorts of widespread assumptions -- these financial myths --turn out to be wrong, most financial-market participants find themselves poorly positioned for the resulting shocks," Rosengren said. "The result is insolvency of groups of firms and substantial uncertainty."
To avoid a repeat, Rosengren said, financial institutions and regulators should use stress tests that employ computer models to forecast outcomes based on a variety of scenarios. The Federal Reserve used stress tests during the financial crisis to gauge the long-term solvency of the nation's largest banks, and help restore confidence in banking system.
Regulators and financial institutions must become better at risk management, analyzing what happens when long-established historical relationships break down and what causes those breaks, Rosengren said..
"We need to think about an environment where those in the position of most influence have the incentive to 'poke holes in myths via robust stress tests," Rosengren said, "and not the incentives to override their risk managers when the stress-test implications are not to their liking, or risk a near term loss of clients or market share."
The most recent recession is not the first time mistaken assumptions have contributed a financial crash, Rosengren said. He noted the dot-com bust of the last decade, when investors assumed new technologies meant profits were not longer so important in valuing companies. Ultimately, they were.
This time around, Rosengren added, the myths were more destructive because they were interwoven into the financial system, which is vital to the functioning of the entire economy, not just a sector. Among the assumptions: US real estate markets were so diverse, national home prices wouldn't decline; securitizing mortgages would effectively spread risks; banks could protect themselves by selling mortgages rather than keeping them on their balance sheets; and investment banks were unlikely to experience runs similar to those that have crippled depository banks. All proved wrong.
"The recent financial crisis highlighted that unlikely events can happen, and when they do, the outcomes can be quite costly for everyone," Rosengren said. "So the need for better risk management is clear."
Posted by kstringer at 12:50 PM | Comments (0)
In just a week, Mass. gas prices surge 17 cents
Massachusetts gas prices, fueled by social unrest in the Middle East and North Africa, soared 17 cents in the past week but still remained well below the national average.
Gas has risen in Massachusetts 24 cents per gallon since the beginning of the year, and self-serve regular is now 66 cents more than at the same time last year.
AAA found gas as low as $3.14 per gallon and as high as $3.49.
Posted by jnunes at 12:45 PM | Comments (0)
February 25, 2011
Fares rising: 5 tips on what to do
This morning my pal Katie Johnston Chase reported that airlines have raised domestic ticket prices five times this year in response to climbing fuel costs, which have recently spiked due to Mideast unrest.
And they may go higher.
Recently, the spread of pro-Democracy protests has sparked fears of supply shortages, triggering a jump in the price of oil. But the fact is fuel prices were on the rise even before the upheavals in Egypt and elsewhere -- in fact, they have surged more that 50 percent over the past year. And that's because demand has risen as global economies, particularly in Asia, have begun climbing out of the Great Recession.
As I said, even before recent events, airfares were on the rise, climbing more than 10 percent nationwide in the third quarter of 2010 compared to the same period in 2009 -- partly due to fuel prices but also because of airline consolidation and cuts in flight schedules (i.e. cutting supply to increase demand). And analysts expect prices to rise as much as another 15 percent this year to keep up with fuel costs.
OK, but the question now is what to do. The airlines will continue to have sales as part of their strategy to ensure every seat on every plane is filled. But as we've seen so far this year, the discounts tend to be targeted: relatively short term and with restrictions on days and dates. Here are some tips:
*The best day to fly is Wednesday, with Tuesday and Saturday running a close second. That's because the much-coveted business travelers tend to book travel for days at both ends of the workweek.
*The best day to buy airline tickets tends to be on Tuesdays because carriers often spring sales from Monday evening through Tuesday. And conversely the worst time to shop for fares is on the weekend.
*Don't buy too far in advance. Carriers work to carefully control seats and prices. And they start releasing cheaper seats about 3-4 months before departure for domestic flights and a little farther out for international trips. That way they can test the water a little as well as ensure that they have a comfortable base level of seats sold.
*When you see a good price jump on it. Sale prices tend to be short in duration -- sometimes even as little as a matter of hours. Familiarize yourself with pricing in the period you plan to travel and when something looks good go ahead and buy. Waiting will likely not benefit you.
*Finally, don't assume "discount'' carriers always offer the best prices. The bigger, legacy airlines have deep pockets and want to be competitive on their key routes.
Posted by globebusiness at 3:23 PM | Comments (0)
Ousted film program director sues state
Nicholas A. Paleologos, the former director of the Massachusetts Film Office sued state officials yesterday, claiming they improperly ousted him from his job two months ago.
The administration of Governor Deval Patrick said late last year that it decided to let Paleologos go on Jan. 1 as part of a reorganization of the state's marketing agencies, including the film office. Under an economic bill passed by the Legislature last year, the administration gained control of the film office's parent agency, the Massachusetts Sports and Entertainment Commission.
According to the suit, the state's secretary of housing and economic development, Gregory Bialecki, told Paleologos on Nov. 18 that he would no longer be working for the agency, effective Jan. 1.
But Paleologos's lawsuit contends that "Bialecki had no authority to unilaterally terminate Paleologos' employment." Instead, the suit argues that he first needed approval by the board of the Massachusetts Marketing Partnership, the state agency underneath Bialecki that now oversees the film office.
The suit says that the state asked Paleologos, who took over the film office in 2007, to temporarily continue working for the state in January on a contract basis. But Paleologos' lawyers rejected the offer, arguing he was still an agency employee.
The suit, filed in Suffolk Superior Court, asks that a judge declare that Paleologos became an employee of the Massachusetts Marketing Partnership after the Oct. 1 reorganization with all the related salary and benefits. The suit was directed at the Massachusetts Marketing Partnership, Bialecki, and the director of the state's travel and tourism agency, which also helps oversee the film office.
A state spokeswoman couldn't immediately be reached. But in a letter to Paleologos in December, the general counsel for the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development said the law didn't require it to offer Paleologos a job.
Paleologos, a former state representative and film producer, helped oversee a wave of new filmmaking in Massachusetts after the state started offering an aggressive incentive program to lure Hollywood producers to the state.
Kimberly Haberlin, a spokeswoman for the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development, said the state "appropriately implemented" the new management structure in accordance with the statute. And a general counsel for the office told Paleologos in December that the law didn't require the administration to offer him a job.
Starting in 2005, the state began offering to reimburse producers for up to 25 percent of the cost of filming movies, television shows, and commercials in the state through so-called "refundable tax credits."
In December, the administration appointed local advertising and entertainment executive John Dukakis to lead an advisory committee to develop a new mission for the film office and find a replacement for Paleologos.
Posted by globebusiness at 2:50 PM | Comments (0)
Harvard Bioscience 4Q profit falls on costs
HOLLISTON -- Medical instruments maker Harvard Bioscience Inc. today reported a drop in fourth-quarter net income despite higher revenues as its costs rose.
The company earned $2.2 million, or 8 cents per share, down from profit of $3.8 million, or 12 cents per share, during the same period a year prior. Revenue rose 7 percent to $29.5 million from $27.7 million.
Operating costs rose 13 percent to $11.5 million from $10.1 million. Sales costs also increased.
Harvard Bioscience said its fourth-quarter adjusted net income from continuing operations was $3.2 million, or 11 cents per share, up from to $3 million, or 10 cents per share.
For the full year, the company earned $19.1 million, or 65 cents per share, up from $7.2 million, or 24 cents per share, in 2009. Revenue rose to $108.2 million from $85.8 million.
It forecast adjusted first-quarter earnings per share in a range of 7 cents to 8 cents on revenues between $26 million and $28 million.
Harvard Bioscience's shares slipped 6 cents, or 1.4 percent, to $4.32 in afternoon trading.
Posted by globebusiness at 2:13 PM | Comments (0)
Amag 4Q loss widens on costs, lower tax benefit
LEXINGTON -- Amag Pharmaceuticals Inc., which sells an iron compound to treat anemia, said today that its fourth-quarter loss widened on higher costs and a dip in income tax benefits.
But the loss was not as large as analysts had expected and its revenue topped forecasts. Its shares were up about 4 percent.
The company said lost $19.8 million, or 94 cents per share, compared with a loss of $18.4 million, or $1.07 per share, during the same period a year prior. Revenue rose 31 percent to $17.2 million from $13.1 million, mainly on sales of the anemia drug Feraheme.
Analysts polled by FactSet expected a loss of $1.04 per share on revenue of about $16.6 million.
Operating costs and expenses rose 13 percent to $37.4 million. Meanwhile, the company's income tax benefit fell to $10,000 from just under $1.1 million a year prior.
For the full year, the company lost $81.2 million, or $3.90 per share, compared with a loss of $93.4 million, or $5.46 per share, in 2009. Revenue rose to $66.2 million from $17.2 million.
Amag's shares rose 64 cents to $17.88 in afternoon trading.
Posted by globebusiness at 2:07 PM | Comments (0)
Talbots tests new store format
Models show off clothing featured in an online Talbots catalog.
Talbots Inc., the Hingham retailer known for its classically styled women's clothes, said it has open a new "design concept store" at a New Jersey mall that, according to one company executive, is "modeled after a woman’s dream closet."
Talbots has been struggling to remain fashion relevant. The new store at the Westfield Garden State Plaza in Paramus, N.J., the company said, represents "a significant step in continuing to push the Talbots brand forward and offering a premium customer experience."
In a press release describing the new store, Talbots said, "This unique and innovative 5,500 square foot store features an upscale residential feel, five individual rooms for different merchandise stories, and other exciting elements which bring Talbots 'Tradition Transformed' brand platform to life and will appeal to both long-time and new Talbots customers."
If the new store lives up to expectations, Talbots said it would consider rolling out the new store's design, fixtures, and merchandise presentation to other locations in the 568-store chain as part of the company’s "overall store reimage program."
The release included a statement from Trudy F. Sullivan, Talbots president and chief executive.
Commenting on the new store, Sullivan said, "We look forward to fostering deep relationships with our long term, loyal customers as well as those who may have just recently discovered the brand.”
As workplace dress codes get more casual and fashion tastes evolve away from classic stylings, Tablots has been attempting to expand its customer base beyond its core customer of middle-age women. It has been looking to affect a turnaround and woo younger women, but last month, it had to cut its financial guidance to investors after a weak holiday season.
The store photo with this post was included with the Talbots press release.
Posted by globebusiness at 1:41 PM | Comments (0)
Verenium will promote Levine to chief executive
Verenium Corp., an industrial biotechnology company that still has a presence in Cambridge, said that president and chief executive Carlos Riva will retire.
James Levine, who currently holds the titles of executive vice president and chief financial officer at Verenium, will be promoted to president and chief executive, Verenium said in a press release.
Riva will continue to be available to the company as a consultant for a period of time, Verenium added.
Verenium develops enzymes that are designed to make products and processes more environmentally friendly and cost-efficient.
Last year, Verenium sold its cellulosic biofuels business to BP PLC, the large energy company, for about $98 million. Verenium retained its industrial enzyme business; most of the operations for that business are located in San Diego.
Verenium is now in the process of relocating to San Diego, and it expects to close its Cambridge office by mid year, a company spokeswoman said.
Posted by globebusiness at 10:01 AM | Comments (0)
Cape Cod can’t hold a candle to Kissimmee
Cape Cod just manages to squeeze onto the bottom of a top 10 list of rental vacation hot spots devised by TripAdvisor, the online travel review website headquartered in Newton.
Topping the list is Kissimmee, Fla., a chunk of Orlando exurbia that is handy to such theme parks and attractions as Disney World and Gator Jumparoo, an alligator rodeo of sorts that's part of Gatorland's entertainment features. (If the Calgary Stampede stars bucking broncs and ornery bulls, Gatorland's Jumparoo features alligators that like to frisk and sport about.) The photo with this post was taken from Gatorland's website.
According to TripAdvisor, its list focuses on locales that offer "a wealth of fun family activities and natural beauty, as well as plentiful vacation rental options," and Kissimmee is chock-a-block with such vacation virtues.
Gatlinburg, Tenn., ranks number three on TripAdvisor's list, far ahead of Cape Cod, which is pegged at number 10. According to TripAdvisor, Gatlinburg provides plenty of scenic vistas of the Great Smoky Mountains and can be a swell base camp for families whose idea of fun is hiking, horseback riding, fishing, and whitewater rafting.
Other locations on the list include Big Bear Lake, Calif.; Kihei, Hawaii; and the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Take a look at this list, and vacationer might conclude that the Midwest and the Rocky Mountain West need a good leaving-alone. Chicago types may rave about Lake Geneva or the Wisconsin Dells, but nothing from those regions turns up in the TripAdvisor top 10 list of vacation rental hot sports, which is pretty much crammed with locations in California, Florida, and Hawaii.
TripAdvisor's press release included a statement from Hank Hudepohl, the company's director of vacation rentals.
“Vacation rentals can offer families and groups of travelers significant savings over other accommodation options,” Hudepohl said. “Our list shows off some of the best vacation rental destinations in the US where travelers can save big, ranging from prime summer beach spots to areas with first-rate ski resorts.”
Posted by globebusiness at 9:13 AM | Comments (0)
Sensable software helps craft better false teeth
Sensable, a Wilmington company focused on software and products for computer-aided design, or CAD, said it has debuted a major upgraded version of Intellifit, its touch-enabled CAD dental solution that helps lab technicians craft better fitting crowns, veneers, and false teeth.
In a previous incarnation, the product was called the Sensable Dental Lab System, but the company chose to rebrand it as Intellifit at the start of the year.
One feature of the upgraded product is touch-enabled virtual articulation, which enables lab technicians to "feel the fit" of what they are fabricating, Sensable said.
“We’re proud to offer the industry’s first touch-enabled virtual articulator integrated into the Intellifit system,” Bob Steingart, president of Sensable Dental, said in a statement. "Allowing lab technicians to assess the fit of restorations by 'feel,' in a way that they are used to – and giving them the tools to easily make adjustments – means more productivity for labs."
The photo of the Intellifit system that appears with this post was taken from the company's website.
Posted by globebusiness at 8:01 AM | Comments (0)
Cambridge Savings expands financial ed program
Cambridge Savings Bank said it has expanded its financial education program into 17 local communities in Eastern Massachusetts.
The bank calls the initiative the CSBsmart Financial Education Program, and it seeks to improve financial literacy among of all ages and economic backgrounds. The goal, the bank said, is to provide valuable lessons about finance to school-age children, at-risk adults, retirees, and more.
“Expanding the CSBsmart Financial Education Program fulfills a critically important aspect of the bank’s commitment to improve the financial well being of people living in the communities we serve,” bank president and chief executive Robert M. Wilson said in a statement. “By increasing the scope of CSBsmart, the bank addresses a tremendous marketplace need. In an era in which too many people have been taken advantage of by unscrupulous lenders or pay too much in fees to check cashing businesses, consumers absolutely must have better understanding of their finances.”
With $2.2 billion in assets, Cambridge Savings Bank operates 15 banking centers in communities such as Cambridge, Arlington, Bedford, Belmont, Burlington, Concord, Lexington, and Watertown.
Posted by globebusiness at 5:50 AM | Comments (0)
February 24, 2011
Fox25 to add early evening newscast
Jim Davis/Globe Staff/File 2010
Anchors Mark Ockerbloom (left) and Maria Stephanos (right) a will anchor the hourlong newscast on Fox 25 starting at 6 p.m.
Boston's Fox25 is adding a weekday newscast at 6:30 p.m., when its broadcast competitors offer national network news programs, beginning on March 14.
The newscast will extend the 6 p.m. newscast that WFXT-TV (Channel 25) launched in September 2009. Maria Stephanos and Mark Ockerbloom, along with chief meteorologist Kevin Lemanowicz, will anchor the news hour.
WFXT cleared the schedule for the half-hour of news when it dropped syndication rights for the sitcom "Seinfeld." Fox25 will move the news entertainment show "TMZ" to 7 p.m., followed by "The Simpsons" at 7:30 p.m.
Gregg Kelley, general manager of WFXT, was unavailable for immediate comment.
WFXT has been gradually adding more newscasts in recent years. Last September, in an effort to appeal to morning commuters, the station added a 4:30 a.m. newscast and extended the morning program "Fox25 Morning News'' an additional hour until 10 a.m.
WFXT has lagged behind in the 6 p.m. local ratings. Last month, WCVB-TV (Channel 5) led that news race with 279,000 total viewers, followed by WHDH-TV (Channel 7) with 194,000; WBZ-TV (Channel 4) with 125,000; and WFXT with 53,000.
At 6:30, WCVB leads the market with ABC's evening news, followed by NBC and CBS in third place.
The only other local news program at that time appears on cable channel NECN, which captures only a fraction of the viewership of its broadcast competition. NECN offers a business show anchored by Latoyia Edwards and Mike Nikitas in that time slot.
Posted by globebusiness at 5:30 PM | Comments (0)
New Balance unveils Girls on the Run event
New Balance Athletic Shoe Inc. said it is launching an annual event that will benefit Girls on the Run of Suffolk County, an initiative that promotes healthy lifestyles and self respect for preteen girls.
The first annual New Balance Girls on the Run 5K event is scheduled for Saturday May 14 in Boston, Boston-based New Balance said. Girls on the Run of Suffolk County launched in 2010 through Hill House, a local community organization.
"Covering 3.1 miles along the Charles River, the family-friendly run/walk welcomes all participants from competitive runners to families with strollers," New Balance said in a press release. "The race begins at the DCR Hatch Shell and follows along the Esplanade, ending back at the Hatch Shell."
People can register at www.GOTRBoston.org or register on race day beginning at noon. A portion of registration fees for the event will benefit Girls on the Run of Suffolk County, New Balance said.
Posted by globebusiness at 1:20 PM | Comments (0)
Iron Mountain 4Q results sink on impairment charge
BOSTON -- Data storage and management company Iron Mountain Inc. said today that its net income sank by nearly half in the fourth quarter, primarily because of an impairment charge related to its digital business unit.
For the final three months of the year, the company earned $33 million, or 16 cents per share. That's compared with $61 million, or 30 cents per share, in the year-ago period. Not including one-time charges, the company said it earned 30 cents per share in the quarter. By that measure, analysts on average expected income of 31 cents per share, according to FactSet.
Shares of Iron Mountain fell 68 cents, or 2.6 percent, to $25.30.
The results in the latest quarter included a $29 million impairment based on a final valuation of the digital business completed during the quarter.
The total impairment charge of $284 million, of which $255 million was recorded in the third quarter, reflects economic pressures on the digital business and lower pricing related to the eDiscovery business, the company said.
Quarterly revenue was $789 million, up slightly from $779 million a year ago. The increase was the result of gains in storage internal revenue growth.
For all of 2010, the company reported a net loss of $54 million, or 27 cents per share, reflecting the impairment charges taken in the final two quarters of the year. In 2009, the company had net income of $221 million, or $1.08 per share.
For 2011, the company said it expects adjusted earnings per share of $1.21 to $1.30 per share. Analysts expect net income of $1.23 per share for the year.
Posted by globebusiness at 1:03 PM | Comments (0)
Another state agency head leaving office
The Patrick administration continued to consoldiate its grip over Massachusetts's independent development agencies with the resignation today of the head of the state's venture capital firm.
Bob Crowley, president of the Massachusetts Technology Development Corp., is the fifth agency executive to step down since Patrick was elected to a second term in November. Crowley, head of the MTDC since 2002, has agreed to step down June 30, the Patrick administration announced.
The Massachusetts Technology Development Corporation is a small Boston-based venture capital firm formed in 1978 and owned by the state. It has invested in 126 companies over its history.
"I am very proud of what MTDC has accomplished over the last 30 years," said Crowley, who first joined the agency in 1978 as an investment analyst. "We started as an experiment to see whether a state-sponsored venture capital operation could be a successful economic development entity. I believe that we have not only proved that it could, but based on MTDC’s success investing in
early-stage technology companies, we have become a national model for other states."
The Legislature last year gave the governor greater control over many of the state's far-flung independent agencies, by installing Patrick's secretary of economic development as chairman of their boards. Many of the heads of those agencies have held their positions for years and were appointed by Patrick's predecessors.
Crowley's departure was consistent with the administration's "efforts to restructure the state’s economic development agencies to achieve better coordination, greater effectiveness and cost-savings for the public," said Kimberly Haberlin, a spokeswoman for the adminsitration's economic development chief, Gregory Bialecki.
Haberlin said the administration will continue to review whether other economic development agencies need a shake-up, and will seek to reduce salaries and benefits "so that they are better aligned with budget realities and the public’s expectations."
Crowley, who earned $188,000 a year, will receive six months severance.
Earlier this week, the administration pushed out Mitchell Adams, the head of the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative. Adams, previously a top aide to former Gov. William Weld, has agreed to step down as soon as a replacement is found.
Last week, Massachusetts Port Authority director Thomas J. Kinton Jr. announced he will retire in July, ending a 35-year-career with the agency, after a dispute with the administration over his pay. He earned $295,000 a year and will receive a $459,000 payout for unused sick time.
And in December, the Patrick Administration asked Robert Culver, the head of the Massachusetts Development Finance Agency, to resign. Culver, who led the agency for seven years, earned $299,000 a year. The administration also eliminated the job of Nicholas Paleologos, who ran the state's film office, as part of a reorganization of its marketing programs.
Posted by globebusiness at 12:29 PM | Comments (0)
Google wants to help with dinner
Google Inc. has stitched together maps for much of the planet; it has scanned thousands of books and created an online museum to showcase artistic masterpieces, and now, with a new recipe feature, the search-engine giant seeks to be the go-to online repository for home chefs who want to wow their dinner guests or cook up a fast dessert.
Need a recipe for whipping up low-calorie chocolate chip cookies in under 30 minutes? In the old days --- a.k.a. yesterday --- fashioning an efficient Google query to unearth such information could be a clunky proposition. No more, claims California-based Google, which is now rolling out a new tool designed to make finding dietary data and culinary content a snap. (Click on the image at left to see how the changes to recipe searches look - before and after the roll-out. For the United States, that roll-out should be completed by the end of the week, said Jack Menzel, Google's product management director.
On any given day, up to 1 percent of searches on Google are for recipes, he said, and that adds up to millions of recipe searches daily. The sheer size of that volume motivated Google to embark on a project designed to get better and faster results for recipe searchers.
Previously, someone who entered the query "chocolate chip cookies" might get directions to a nearby bakery or be directed to a retail website that sells Cookie Monster action figures.
Now, on the left of a Google Web page related to food, there will be a "search view" tool for recipes that appears below such other search view tools designed for news, videos, and shopping. Click on the recipe search view and users will be able to further refine their searches by clicking on boxes for ingredients, calorie counts, and cooking times.
In describing the new feature, Menzel said that "recipe search view" is "a tool on top of Google search" that makes "searches a lot more conversational."
Besides developing a new tool to help narrow and refine recipe searches, Google has also consulted with many of the websites devoted to celebrity chefs and cuisine. Those sites have been encouraged to provide more data so that the content on those sites can be described more vividly and succinctly. Combine a new tool with additional information, and the result will be more rewarding recipe searches for Google users, Menzel said.
Faster, more efficient recipe searches are all well and good for amateur chefs who want to dazzle diners with chicken dumplings and cookies beyond compare. But how does Google make money off the new feature?
Menzel cited the usual company mantra about how Mission One at Google is to "delight the user." Delight the user --- and the dollars will follow seems to be the theory.
In this case, devising tools that result in more refined searches should translate into more targeted exposure for companies that advertise on those Web pages. And making Web pages that are more relevant to advertisers as well as to users should, in turn, translate into more ad revenue for Google.
Images above provided by Google.
Posted by globebusiness at 12:01 PM | Comments (0)
Ex-Mass. seafood firm owner gets 5 years for fraud
The former owner of a Massachusetts seafood wholesale company has been sentenced to five years in prison after pleading guilty to defrauding a bank of $7 million.
A federal judge in Boston yesterday also sentenced Cumberland, R.I., resident Robert Coutu to three years of supervised release. The judge ordered Coutu to repay Wells Fargo Business Credit Inc. more than $6.5 million.
Prosecutors say Coutu and some employees before 2005 started falsely inflating Ocean Fresh Seafood Inc.'s receivables and inventory balances to make it appear the company was buying and selling more seafood than it was so it could borrow millions of dollars from the bank.
The company was based in North Attleborough, an industrial town of 30,000 residents.
The 53-year-old Coutu pleaded guilty in September to conspiracy to commit bank fraud, bank fraud, and money laundering.
Posted by globebusiness at 11:42 AM | Comments (0)
Liberty Mutual website airs Freedom Riders films
Johnson Publishing Company
Liberty Mutual Group, the global insurance company headquartered in Boston, said that four short films about the 1961 civil rights Freedom Riders will be available at the company's ResponsibilityProject.com website.
The Responsibility Project is an "organic evolution of the company's advertising campaign that has showcased personal acts of responsibility and daily examples of ordinary people making the decision to do considerate things for strangers," Liberty Mutual said in a press release.
Liberty Mutual has partnered with PBS to bring the "Freedom Riders" experience to its website. PBS plans to air an American Experience documentary on the Freedom Riders in May. Liberty Mutual has sponsored PBS' American Experience series for more than a decade. The launch of the short films celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Freedom Rides as well as mark February as Black History month, Liberty Mutual said.
In a statement, Paul Alexander, Liberty Mutual's senior vice president of communications, commented on the "Freedom Rider" films that are airing on ResponsibilityProject.com.
"We hope that by experiencing the film series through our Responsibility Project website, individuals will be inspired to discuss responsibility as it relates to history and the 1961 Freedom Rides," Alexander said.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:03 AM | Comments (0)
Dassault will team with Jaguar Land Rover
This Land Rover photo was taken from Land Rover's website.
Dassault Systèmes, a French company with a big presence in Massachusetts, said it has entered a strategic relationship with the Jaguar Land Rover that aims to result in extensive collaboration on the auto maker’s automotive design infrastructure.
The two companies said they will work together to jointly develop product creation solutions, and Jaguar Land Rover will deploy Dassault Systèmes’ V6 solutions for Product Lifecycle Management.
Dassault’s ENOVIA software, which is developed in Lowell, its 3DVIA software, which is developed in Concord, and its SIMULIA software, which is developed in Rhode Island, are "all part of this implementation that will form the backbone of the global auto maker’s automotive design infrastructure."
Earlier this month, Dassault Systèmes said it has been hired to provide product lifecycle management solutions to BMW, the luxury auto brand.
In September, Dassault Systèmes announced plans to establish a campus in Waltham and consolidate its operations in Lowell and Concord there. At the time of the announcement, the company said it had 800 employees in Massachusetts. Plans call for the Waltham site to be the center of the company's operations in North and South America. At the time, Dassault Systèmes employed 9,000 employees worldwide.
Posted by globebusiness at 8:32 AM | Comments (0)
Thermo Fisher Scientific agrees to sell 2 units
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., a large maker of scientific instruments, announced today that it has signed definitive agreements to sell its Athena Diagnostics and Lancaster Laboratories businesses for a total of $940 million in cash.
The Globe ran a Bloomberg News story last month that Waltham-based Thermo Fisher Scientific was seeking to sell the two lab-testing divisions, which are outside of the company's long-term strategic focus. Bloomberg based its story on "three people with knowledge of the matter."
In a press release today, the company said it had reached an agreement to sell Athena Diagnostics to Quest Diagnostics Inc. of New Jersey. Athena Diagnostics, based in Worcester, is a reference laboratory that provides comprehensive diagnostic testing for neurological and other diseases.
The release added that Thermo Fisher Scientific reached an agreement to sell Lancaster Laboratories to Belgium-based Eurofins Scientific SE for $200 million, subject to a post-closing adjustment. Lancaster Laboratories, based in Lancaster, Pa., is a contract-testing laboratory.
Thermo Fisher expects to close these transactions in the second quarter of 2011.
Thermo Fisher added that its board of directors has authorized a new $750 million share repurchase program, which expires Feb. 22, 2012. As of today, the company has approximately $385 million remaining under its existing share repurchase authorization, which expires Sept. 8, 2011.
Posted by globebusiness at 7:44 AM | Comments (0)
Dunkin’ Donuts is heading to India
Dunkin' Donuts, the Canton-based coffee-and-baked-goods chain, said it has signed a franchise agreement that will enable it to enter the Indian market.
The franchise agreement is with Jubilant FoodWorks Ltd., and plans call for Jubilant to open more than 500 Dunkin' Donuts throughout India over the next 15 years.
Dunkin' was bought by new owners about five years ago, and since that time, has been embarked on aggressive expansion, both in the United States and abroad.
According to today's press release, Dunkin' Donuts now has about 9,700 restaurants on four continents, and the chain is set to open its 3,000th international location this month.
Posted by globebusiness at 5:55 AM | Comments (0)
February 23, 2011
Eaton Vance Q1 net income down 19 percent
Investment manager Eaton Vance Corp. said net income fell 19 percent in the first quarter primarily due to investment losses and other one-time costs that pulled down earnings despite increased revenue.
The Boston-based company posted net income of $37.5 million, or 30 cents per share, compared with $46.2 million, or 37 cents per share, a year ago.
Revenue climbed nearly 15 percent to $312.3 million from $272 million.
The company reported $2.9 million in investment losses in the quarter, compared with a gain of $2.5 million in the comparable quarter a year ago.
Another significant one-time impact was the deduction of $21.8 million to account for the increased estimated redemption value held by senior managers and other employees in a subsidiary. The deduction is required by accounting rules passed last year. That compares to $5.3 million a year ago.
Excluding those one-time items and others, the company reported operating income of $103 million compared with $87.3 million a year ago. Earnings per share excluding the accounting charge for controlling interest redemption would have been 45 cents per share in the current quarter and 39 cents a year ago.
Analysts expected 44 cents.
Shares fell $1.54, or 4.7 percent, to $31.40 in midday trading.
Assets under management on Jan. 31 were up 19 percent to $191.7 billion, a new all-time high. That compares to $161.6 billion as of Jan. 31, 2010.
The company said investment advisory and administration fees increased 15 percent, distribution and underwriter fees increased 9 percent, and service fee revenue increased 10 percent.
Operating expenses increased $24.6 million, or 13 percent, to $209.3 million in the first quarter, compared with operating expenses of $184.7 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2010.
Compensation expense increased 12 percent due to an increased number of employees and higher base salaries, bonus accruals, sales-based incentives, and other compensation, benefits and payroll taxes.
The company said it used $26.8 million to repurchase and retire approximately 900,000 shares of its non-voting common stock in the quarter.
Posted by globebusiness at 1:29 PM | Comments (0)
Jordan’s launches Play Ball Program
Jordan’s Furniture said it is launching the Play Ball Program, a donation project designed to supply "gently-used baseball/softball equipment to inner-city youth."
The furniture store chain said it is partnering on the project with the Red Sox Foundation’s “Reviving Baseball to Inner Cities” initiative, and the hope is that the program will get gear into the hands of about 2,000 kids this year. (At right is the logo that Jordan's had created for the program.)
The Play Ball Program starts this week and runs until April 1; equipment donations can be dropped off at Jordan’s Furniture store locations in Reading, Avon, Natick, and Nashua as well as at the chain's Taunton Distribution Center, Jordan's said. The program looks to collect bats (metal only), catcher’s equipment, helmets, gloves, cleats (metal and plastic), outdoor bases, baseballs (new), and softballs (new).
In a statement, Jordan's Furniture president and chief executive Eliot Tatelman said: “In this day and age of pay-to-play, there are thousands of kids that just cannot afford to play sports. We think that every youth should enjoy America’s favorite pastime so we created the Play Ball Program. And with the help of the Red Sox Foundation, we’ll be able to reach a lot of inner-city kids in our area.”
Posted by globebusiness at 1:11 PM | Comments (0)
Tune in the tropics with new Comcast TV choice
Comcast
Winter weather may be wearing out the heartiest of locals, but on-demand viewership has shot up so sharply during recent snow storms that Comcast has decided to launch a new feature to help folks cope with cabin fever.
Comcast calls the new option "Winter Escape." But it's designed to be as much HD TV therapy as another on-demand channel for local subscribers. Tune in to the new channel, and viewers are treated to video vistas of beautiful beaches along the Florida Keys, while steel drum music plays in the background. (The photo with this post is a screen-grab from one of the Comcast videos.)
Now, in theory, tantalizing housebound viewers with palmy visions of paradise might drive some people mad, but Comcast believes that such eye candy can soothe the collective karma of Greater Bostonians ruffled by a surfeit of snow, shoveling, and school cancellations.
"Winter Escape," like many on-demand features, can be viewed by Comcast cable TV subscribers at no extra charge, a Comcast spokesman said. Winter Escape can be found On Demand in the TV Entertainment folder at "TV Entertainment < TV Screensavers < Winter Escape" in either High Definition or standard definition, he added.
For the record, On Demand use is up 23 percent for the first few weeks of 2011 when compared with the comparable period a year ago, the Comcast spokesman said.
So, presumably, "Winter Escape" will have something of a built-in captive audience.
Posted by globebusiness at 12:53 PM | Comments (0)
American Tower 4Q profit rises on int'l growth
BOSTON -- Broadcast and communications tower operator American Tower Corp. said its fourth-quarter profit rose 30 percent as revenue rose from expansion in new international markets.
The company had net income of $83.5 million, or 21 cents per share, for the quarter ended Dec. 31, up from $64.4 million, or 16 cents per share, a year earlier.
Revenue rose 22 percent to $547.6 million.
Analysts polled by FactSet expected a profit of 22 cents on revenue of $538.3 million.
Domestic rental and management revenue rose 17 percent, while international revenue leaped 53 percent to $115.7 million. The company expanded into Chile, Colombia, Ghana, Peru and South Africa last year, while growing rapidly in India and continuing acquisitions and projects in the U.S., Brazil and Mexico.
For all of 2010, the company earned $372.9 million, or 92 cents per share, compared with $246.6 million, or 61 cents per share, in 2009.
Revenue rose to $1.99 billion from $1.72 billion a year ago.
Posted by globebusiness at 12:15 PM | Comments (0)
AdAge: Barnes & Noble taps Mullen
Mullen, a Boston ad agency, has been hired by bookseller Barnes & Noble, which is looking to refresh its brand with an effort that includes an estimated $40 million investment in marketing and a new look for its stores, AdAge is reporting.
AdAge cited "people familiar with the matter" as the basis for its report.
A spokesman for Mullen declined comment. A spokeswoman for Barnes & Noble said in an e-mail that the chain has "no comment on reports that we hired a new ad agency."
According to AdAge, an industry trade publication, much of Barnes & Noble's marketing efforts will be put behind its e-reader brand Nook, which is in competition with Kindle, the e-reader from Amazon.com. (The Nook is shown above right in a Barnes & Noble handout.)
New accounts that Mullen has won over the last year or so include JetBlue and Zappos.com, the online retailer of footwear and apparel. Existing Mullen clients include Stop&Shop, MassMutual, and General Motors.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:36 AM | Comments (0)
HFF secures loan for Lexington life sciences building
Rendering provided by HFF.
Holliday Fenoglio Fowler LP said that has secured $18.2 million in financing for a project in Lexington that plans to redevelop an industrial property into a "life science/biotech building" at 113 Hartwell Ave.
Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, or HFF, is a provider of commercial real estate and capital markets services. Working on behalf of King Street Properties LLC, HFF said it placed the adjustable-to-fixed-rate loan with Eastern Bank. Loan proceeds will be used to acquire and renovate the property.
HFF described 113 Hartwell Ave. as a vacant 103,000-square-foot industrial property. HFF added that 113 Hartwell Ave. is second such asset purchased by King Street within a five month period. The location is adjacent to MIT’s Lincoln Labs in Lexington. King Street is also redeveloping the adjacent building at 101 Hartwell Ave. into a life sciences property, HFF said.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:11 AM | Comments (0)
Fidelity: 401(k) balances hit 10-year high
The average account balance in 401(k) plans managed by Fidelity Investments reached a 10 year high of $71,500 at the end of 2010, the Boston mutual funds giant said today.
"For participants who were continuously active for the past 10 years, their average balance increased to $183,100 at the end of last year from $59,100 at the end of the fourth quarter 2000," Fidelity said in a press release.
Besides mutual funds, Fidelity is also a large provider of workplace retirement savings plans such as 401(k) plans.
Posted by globebusiness at 8:46 AM | Comments (0)
Vertex cystic fibrosis drug meets study goals
CAMBRIDGE -- Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. said today that its potential cystic fibrosis drug improved lung function in a key late-stage study.
The report sent its shares up $6.78, or 17.7 percent, to $45 in pre-market trading.
The company said VX-770 prompted a 10.5 percent improvement in lung function in the study, which focused on patients with a specific gene mutation. The drug is aimed at treating the genetic cause of the lung condition, rather than just symptoms. But, its target is a small swath of cystic fibrosis patients with a specific gene mutation.
Cystic fibrosis causes a fluid imbalance in the lungs, resulting in mucus plugging, infection, and inflammation. It affects about 30,000 people in the US and around 70,000 people worldwide, the company has said. The study focused on patients with the G551D mutation and about 4 percent of the US cystic fibrosis population has at least on copy of the mutation.
Vertex said the drug also met secondary goals of improving the symptoms of the condition, which include shortness of breath and difficulty breathing.
"Treating the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis with VX-770 led to clinical improvements that were far beyond our expectations, providing support for an entirely new approach to the treatment of this disease," said Peter Mueller, executive vice president of global research and development and chief scientific officer at Vertex.
He said the company plans on working with regulatory agencies to determine the fastest path for approval of VX-770. Vertex expects data from another late-stage study in mid-2011. The company plans on asking for regulatory approval in the US and Europe in the second half of 2011.
(A story in this morning's Globe focused on the state tax breaks that Vertex is getting to help its plan to relocate to the South Boston Waterfront. Critics question whether Vertex should be getting such subsidies at a time when taxpayer funds are scarce. To read that story, please click here.)
Posted by globebusiness at 7:55 AM | Comments (0)
Upromise: Members earned $600m in savings
Upromise by Sallie Mae said its members have saved more than $600 million in cash for college from their everyday spending during Upromise's nearly 10 years of existence.
Headquartered in Newton, Upromise by Sallie Mae has specifically designed its rewards program for consumers interested in contributing to a college savings account or paying off a student loan. Consumers who sign up to become Upromise members earn cash rewards when they make purchases at participating retailers. These points translate into dollars in their college savings accounts. Upromise is owned by SLM Corp., which is commonly known as Sallie Mae. Sallie Mae is focused on programs for saving, planning, and paying for education.
Using industry data on average tuition costs, Upromise by Sallie Mae estimates that $600 million would cover the expense of s a four-year college education for 20,000 students.
Posted by globebusiness at 6:13 AM | Comments (0)
February 22, 2011
Steward Health Care offers to buy hospitals in Fla.
A month after announcing plans to expand nationally, the owners of the Caritas Christi Health Care Hospitals have made a bid on an even larger hospital group in Miami.
Steward Health Care System, the Boston-based hospital company that last year bought six Catholic hospitals in the area, has offered to take over the financially troubled Jackson Health System in Miami for $600 million, plus $500 million to cover debt, according to a letter of intent Steward sent the group Monday. Jackson owns six hospitals, including its flagship Jackson Memorial teaching hospital.
As with the Boston acquisition, Steward is appoaching a hospital group with limited options: The Jackson system has lost more than $300 million over the past two years and is on track to run out of cash by summer. Steward is owned by a deep-pocketed private equity firm in New York, Cerberus Capital Management, and Boston executive Ralph de la Torre is leading its charge to assemble a large hospital chain.
Any deal with Jackson would have to be approved by the Public Health Trust that oversees the system, as well as the Board of County Commissioners in Miami-Dade County.
Steward executives were unavailable to be interviewed on their first major foray outside the Boston market. In a statement, a Florida spokesman the company has hired said, "Intensive discussions with elected and appointed officials are just getting underway, and at the same time we are preparing for a thorough due diligence period."
Dr. Mark Rogers, a trustee on the Public Health Trust board and a former chief executive at Duke Hospital, said Jackson just recently decided to consider private investments in the ailing public hospital group. But the board is concerned about maintaining the hospitals' standards.
"If we choose a partner that's merely interested in cutting costs, we may end up hurting the University of Miami, the medical school and the development of new centers of excellence at Jackson,'' Rogers said. "We need to evaluate whether Steward would be interested in and be able to help support those activities, or whether their attention to cost cutting will result in conflicts on these issues."
Cerberus, which manages $23 billion in investments, spent $895 million to buy the Caritas hospitals -- including St. Elizabeth's Medical Center in Brighton and Carney Hospital in Dorchester -- and create Steward last November.
Posted by kstringer at 2:21 PM | Comments (0)
Tax incentives fail to create all the jobs promised
The Massachusetts Life Sciences Center said today that more than half of the 26 companies that received tax incentives from the center in late 2009 failed to create all of the jobs they promised last year.
The center, an independent state agency chartered to support the state's life sciences industry, said five companies have already agreed to return their awards and eight more could potentially be forced to do so because they haven't created at least 70 percent of the jobs they pledged. In addition, one more company fell just short of the jobs it promised, but not enough to require them to forfeit the awards.
Still, the life sciences center said that the 21 companies that have kept the incentives so far have collectively created 607 jobs, 33 more than promised. Those companies received just over $17 million in tax incentives, which works out to $28,000 per job. And center officials have repeatedly said they will force companies to pay back incentives if they fall far short of their commitments.
Last month, the center said three companies, including Genzyme Corp., voluntarily already agreed to return $6.6 million in incentives after they realized they wouldn't be able to meet their pledges. But today, the life sciences center said two more firms, FoldRX Pharmaceuticals of Cambridge and Zoll Medical Corp. of Chelmsford, agreed to forfeit another $777,500 in incentives.
In addition, eight other companies didn't create at least 70 percent of the jobs they promised: Alnylam Pharmaceuticals of Cambridge, Constellation Pharmaceuticals of Cambridge, Cubist Pharmaceuticals of Lexington, Facet Solutions Inc. of Hopkinton, Infinity Pharmaceuticals of Cambridge, Interlace Medical Inc. of Framingham, Morgan Advanced Ceramics of New Bedford, and TEI Biosciences Inc. of South Boston. Those firms, which received $4.3 million in incentives, had promised to create 161 jobs.
The center said it plans to investigate why they did not meet their job target and could order the companies to return the incentives or give them another year to meet their targets.
In addition, InfraReDx of Burlington, which received $630,000 in incentives, fell just short of the 21 jobs it promised. But it exceeded the 70 percent threshold required under state law, so it won't be required to return the awards.
All the companies received the incentives in December 2009, the first time the life sciences awarded incentives to companies under Governor Deval Patrick's $1 billion initiative to support the state's growing life sciences industry.
In December 2010, the center awarded another $23.9 million in incentives to 30 companies, which promised to create 900 new jobs. It's too early to say, however, how many of the companies will be able to meet those targets.
Posted by kstringer at 1:33 PM | Comments (0)
Green Mountain, Dunkin’ team up on single-serve joe
Fans of Dunkin' Donuts coffee will soon have one more way to enjoy their joe: In singe-serve packets designed for a Keurig home coffee machine.
Dunkin', a coffee-and-baked-goods base chain based in Canton, entered the single-serve home coffee business last year. But its single-serve coffee wasn't originally available in K-Cups from Keurig, a unit of Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. and the dominant player in the single-serve home coffee. Today Dunkin' Donuts and Green Mountain Coffee of Waterbury, Vt., said that Dunkin' coffee in single-serve K-Cup portion packs will become available in the summer.
"Our goal is to give our customers more ways to enjoy Dunkin' Donuts coffee," Dunkin' Donuts president Nigel Travis said.
Dunkin' coffee in K-Cup portion packs will be available only at participating Dunkin' Donuts restaurants, but not in grocery stores.
"The reality is that Keurig single-serve home brewers are becoming a major force in home coffee consumption," said Scott Van Winkle, an analyst with Canaccord Genuity, an institutional investment bank. "If you're not available in K-Cups, you're going to lose market share" in the single-serve home coffee business.
Green Mountain Coffee president and chief executive Lawrence J. Blanford estimates that Keurigs are in 6 to 8 percent of the US households that own coffee machines; the company sold 2.2 million Keurigs in its most recent quarter.
For Green Mountain, the agreement is part of a strategy to align itself "with the strongest coffee brands," Blanford said.
Green Mountain has identified single-serve home brewed coffee as a niche where it can thrive. Earlier this month, its stock took a hit when Starbucks Corp. announced plans to partner with Courtesy Products, a Keurig rival in the single-serve coffee business. Still, speculation continues that a deal between Starbucks and Green Mountain could eventually happen.
Blanford declined to discuss Starbucks today.
In a note to investors, Janney Capital Markets food analyst Mitchell Pinheiro wrote that he doesn't expect the Dunkin' agreement to "pressure Starbucks into joining Keurig as the Dunkin' coffee flavor profile is vastly different than Starbucks." Janney Capital Markets owns Green Mountain shares.
Pinheiro added, "The Dunkin' Donuts K-Cup agreement is a nice win for Keurig as it brings one of the strongest US coffee brands into its portfolio."
Posted by globebusiness at 1:07 PM | Comments (0)
State Street: Investor confidence down
State Street Global Markets
A global investor confidence index fell 9.2 points from January's revised reading of 100.8 to reach 91.6 in February with political turmoil in the Middle East and North Africa a major factor in the decline.
The index is calculated by State Street Global Markets, the investment research and trading arm of State Street Corp., a Boston company that provides financial services to institutional investors.
On a regional basis, the risk appetite of North American institutional investors fell to 92.5, a 6.8 point decline from the January level of 99.3, State Street Global Markets said.
The index was devised with input from Harvard University professor Kenneth Froot.
“The numbers this month are fairly emphatic in signaling a decline in institutional investor confidence,” Froot said in a statement. “Political turmoil in the Middle East and North Africa, policy tightening in emerging markets and qualms about the pace of the recent run-up in developed markets equities are likely at the root of this. In the case of European investors, there is the added uncertainty around the upcoming March negotiations on sovereign debt and the European Financial Stability Facility to consider.”
Posted by globebusiness at 10:50 AM | Comments (0)
Dustin Pedroia re-ups with Salem Five
Red Sox star Dustin Pedroia will continue to promote Salem Five Bank after signing a new two-year contract, the bank said today.
This will be Pedroia's third season representing Salem Five, the bank said. (Pedroia is shown at left in a Globe file photo.)
Salem Five said it will work with Pedroia interactively on various community platforms: through social media campaigns on Twitter (https://twitter.com/salemfivebank) and Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/salemfivebank), special appearances and private bank events.
Salem Five operates 22 branches in communities from Salem, Beverly and Boston to Sudbury, Swampscott, and Woburn.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:54 AM | Comments (0)
WilmerHale taps Bain for venture unit
WilmerHale, a large law firm with offices in Boston, announced the appointment of Michael “Mick” D. Bain as partner-in-charge of the firm’s Venture Group office in Waltham.
Bain (shown at right in a photo from the firm's website) currently serves as co-chair of both the firm’s Venture Capital and Energy and Clean Technology Groups and will continue to lead those practices, said the firm, which added that the Venture Group recently had to relocate to larger space in Waltham.
Lia Der Marderosian, a partner in the Corporate Practice Group, will transfer from the Boston office and join Bain in Waltham, WilmerHale added.
“Our Venture Group symbolizes the firm’s steadfast commitment to the entrepreneurial and venture capital communities, throughout the United States and Europe." William F. Lee, WilmerHale's co-managing partner, said in a statement.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:40 AM | Comments (0)
AS&E receives $16.3m order
American Science and Engineering Inc., a Billerica company specializing in X-ray detection technology, announced today the receipt of a $16.3 million order for Z Backscatter Vans that make use of the detection technology.
The vans are for three agencies in a Latin American country, said American Science and Engineering, or AS&E, in a press release. The company's technology can be used to do everything from baggage screening to detecting plastic explosives.
"This customer win signifies the traction that the ZBV system is gaining within this Latin American region," Anthony Fabiano, president and chief executive, said in a statement.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:03 AM | Comments (0)
Athenahealth forms alliance with Microsoft
Athenahealth Inc. and Microsoft Corp. said they have formed an alliance to launch an electronic health solution designed to improve the connectivity and communication between hospitals, doctors, and patients, and Steward Health Care System in Massachusetts will be one of the early adopters of the connected solution.
Headquartered in Watertown, athenahealth is a Web-based provider of electronic health services to medical groups. In its strategic alliance with technology giant Microsoft, athenahealth said the new offering will connect athenahealth's cloud-based services with Microsoft Amalga, an enterprise health intelligence platform.
Steward is the new owner of six Catholic hospitals in eastern Massachusetts, including St. Elizabeth's Medical Center and Carney Hospital in Boston.
The press release from Microsoft and athenahealth included a statement from Steward Health Care System chief executive and president Ralph de la Torre.
"Athenahealth and Microsoft are bridging the information gap and providing clinicians the ability to access patient information from anywhere, regardless of its origination," de la Torre said. "This will improve our ability to drive efficiencies, improve quality and deliver truly coordinated care. Their shared solution opens the door for a vendor-based solution to care coordination and management, and allows organizations to set their sights on accountable care designation, pay-for-performance programs or global payment methodology. This new solution will allow our organization to execute on new programs like our Alternative Quality Contract (AQC) with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts."
Posted by globebusiness at 7:48 AM | Comments (0)
Mass. home sales rose in January
Massachusetts home sales had the best January in four years as sales volume last month rose 5 percent from sales in January 2010, the Warren Group reported this morning.
But median prices for single family homes fell nearly 7 percent from a year ago to $270,000, said the Warren Group, a Boston firm that tracks local real estate activity.
"It appears that renewed optimism about the economy is attracting buyers and allowing them to make deals at lower prices," Warren Group chief executive Timothy M. Warren Jr. said in a statement.
Getting a fix on where the local housing market is going could be challenging in the months ahead because of tough comparisons with last year. During much of 2010, the federal government was offering a home buyer tax credit as part of a temporary plan to stimulate the economy. Those incentives to purchase homes expired at the end of September.
"It's promising to see the highest sales volume in four years in the state," Timothy Warren said. "However, a little later in the year, positive comparisons with 2010 will be tougher to achieve. In the spring, we will be comparing current sales with sales volume during the height of the home buyer tax credit."
During January 2011, 2,190 single-family homes were sold, up from 2,081 in January 2010, the Warren Group said.
The median sale price of single-family homes decreased for the second consecutive month in January, the Warren Group added. Median sale prices dropped 6.9 percent in January to $270,000, down from $290,000 in January 2010 --- the fifth straight month that median home prices have been below $300,000.
The volume of condominium sales in Massachusetts dropped nearly 18.5 percent to 808 from January 2010, the Warren Group said.
The median condo price in January fell 4.6 percent to $233,750 on a year-to-year basis, the Warren Group said.
The Massachusetts Association of Realtors issued a separate report this morning on residential real estate activity in the state during January 2011. The association uses a slightly different method than the Warren Group to track sales, but the results of both reports were roughly comparable.
In a statement, Massachusetts Association of Realtors president Laurie Cadigan said: “We’re starting 2011 with movement in a positive direction as buyers took advantage of the more affordable pricing to push sales up in January. While we’re still in a buyer’s market, snow and increasing interest rates continue to be some of the variables we’ll watch closely as we edge toward the spring market.”
Posted by globebusiness at 6:05 AM | Comments (0)
February 21, 2011
MTC head Adams to step down
Governor Deval Patrick's administration is forcing out the longtime head of the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative, an independent state agency charged with fostering innovation across the state.
The administration said today that Mitchell Adams, who has run the agency for nearly a decade, has agreed to step down after a replacement is found. Adams, who earns about $264,000 a year, will be entitled to a year's severance under his contract, the agency recently said.
“Today’s announcement is in keeping with our efforts to better align the missions of the state’s various economic development agencies so that our job growth policies are coordinated and effective," said Kimberly Haberlin, spokeswoman for the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development.
In a statement, Adams said, "I am proud of our work to strengthen the state's innovation economy, speed the adoption of healthcare technologies and expand economic opportunities across Massachusetts.
Adams is latest head of a quasi-public agency to be pushed from highly-paid jobs since the Legislature last year gave the governor greater control over these independent economic development organizations.
Just last week, Massachusetts Port Authority director Thomas J. Kinton Jr. announced he will retire in July, ending a 35-year-career with the agency, after a dispute with the administration over his pay. He earned $295,000 a year and will receive a $459,000 payout for unused sick time.
In December, the Patrick Administration asked Robert Culver, the head of the Massachusetts Development Finance Agency, to resign. Culver, who led the agency for seven years, earned $299,000 a year. The administration also eliminated the job of Nicholas Paleologos, who ran the state's film office, as part of a reorganization of its marketing programs.
Under legislation passed last year, Gregory Bialecki, the state's secretary of housing and economic development, became chairman of the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative, the Massachusetts Development Finance Agency, and the Massachusetts Film Office. Adminstration officials have repeatedly said he is working hard to try to better coordinate the agencies' missions.
Bialecki praised Adams' contributions to advancing innovation in the state, in a written statement today.
"I would like to thank Mitch for his dedication to and his passion for the MTC and the Commonwealth’s innovation economy,” Bialecki said. “His vision and his creativity have put the MTC in the middle of every major innovation initiative in the Commonwealth for the last decade, from renewable energy and the life sciences to expanded broadband coverage to electronic medical records and advanced health care technologies.”
The Massachusetts Technology Collaborative is charged with promoting innovative sectors of the state's economy, such as the life sciences and clean energy sectors. But its role has been diminished by the creation of two new state agencies over the past few years, the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center and the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center. In 2009, for instance, the agency stopped making investments in clean energy firms and transferred the job to the Clean Energy Center.
Nevertheless, MTC officials say the agency still plays a major role in supporting health care technology, broadband, nanotechnology and other areas. In fact, an agency spokeswoman noted that the MTC has won $75 million in federal grants over the past 18 months to support the adoption of health care technologies and expand high-speed Internet access throughout Massachusetts.
Posted by jtuohey at 1:09 PM | Comments (0)
February 18, 2011
Two Hub A.J. Wrights will become HomeGoods
HomeGoods, the home fashion chain operated by TJX Cos., said it will open two new Boston stores sometime in May in locations that had previously been A.J. Wright stores.
TJX also operates the A.J. Wright chain, which is being phased out.
One HomeGoods store is planned for the Allston Marketplace at North Beacon and Everett streets in Boston's Allston neighborhood, and the other is located at the Fields Corner Shopping Center, at Geneva Avenue and Park Street, in Boston's Dorchester neighborhood, HomeGoods said.
The stores' grand opening dates are pending the completion of store renovations and will be announced shortly, HomeGoods said in a press release.
In December, Framingham-based TJX disclosed plans to close A.J. Wright, a chain with 162 stores, and cut roughly 1,400 jobs across the state.
A.J. Wright's sales figures had been underperfoming those at three other TJX chains: T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, and HomeGoods. At the time of the announcement, TJX said it planned to convert 91 A.J. Wright shops into T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, or HomeGoods stores.
In today's release, HomeGoods said it operates more than 330 stores across the country. When the two A.J. Wright stores are converted to HomeGoods stores, HomeGoods said it will have 26 stores in the Greater Boston market.
Posted by globebusiness at 3:48 PM | Comments (0)
Gov. signs freeze on Mass. unemployment insurance
Governor Deval Patrick froze unemployment insurance rates to spare businesses from big increases in premiums and help spur new hiring.
Employers' payments finance the trust fund that pays unemployment benefits to the state's jobless. The rates would have risen as much as 40 percent in March as Massachusetts takes steps to keep the fund solvent. Instead, the fund will take interest free loans from the federal government to make up shortfalls resulting from the freeze.
Patrick signed legislation approving a plan to defer the cost increases for business. In a press release, he said the move would save businesses $402 million this year, or an average of $228 per employee.This is the second year in a row Patrick has signed legislation enacting a freeze.
State's typically exhaust unemployment trust funds during economic downturns, particulalry when they last long, as this one has. The money borrowed is repaid as the economy improves and the fund replenished as the fewer workers lose jobs and collect benefits.
Posted by globebusiness at 2:03 PM | Comments (0)
ADL ads: 'Take a Stand Against Bullying'
Ad provided by the ADL and Clear Channel Outdoor.
A new billboard ad campaign is urging motorists to “Take A Stand Against Bullying.”
The campaign is from the Anti-Defamation League, or the ADL, and the Boston division of Clear Channel Outdoor said it has donated space for the campaign at billboards near such locations as the Southeast Expressway, the Massachusetts Turnpike, I-93 North, Route 1, and Route 1A.
The billboards urge motorists to visit www.adl.org/combatbullying and sign ADL’s pledge against bullying.
“Bullying is a serious problem that demands vigilance,” Derrek L. Shulman, ADL's New England regional director, said in a statement. “We now have one of the nation’s strongest anti-bullying laws, but it will be effective only if all members of school communities abide by it."
Posted by globebusiness at 1:52 PM | Comments (0)
Waters OKs $500m share buyback
MILFORD -- Waters Corp. said today that its board approved a plan to repurchase up to $500 million in shares over the next two years.
Shares of the company, which makes instruments used to separate compounds used in biochemistry, rose $2.33, or 2.9 percent, to $82.82 in midday trading.
The company's previous $500 million buyback program was recently completed.
Purchases will be made through open market transactions, subject to market conditions and trading restrictions.
Posted by globebusiness at 1:03 PM | Comments (0)
Reebok ZigTech is set to break Erin Andrews ad
Ad provided by Reebok.
The first ad featuring ESPN broadcaster Erin Andrews is set to break in the April issue of Fitness Magazine, the Canton-based athletic footwear and apparel brand said today.
The ad, shown above, will be a cover wrap of the Fitness Magazine edition, a monthly magazine aimed at women that focuses on fitness and lifestyle, Reebok said.
Last month, the brand said that Andrews would be the first women to be featured in a campaign for its ZigTech shoes, a footwear line that features athletic shoes that, according to Reebok, allows "wearers' key leg muscles to do less, so they can do more."
Football's Peyton Manning and Chad Ochocinco and hockey superstar Sidney Crosby are among the male athletes that have promoted Reebok ZigTech.
Posted by globebusiness at 12:03 PM | Comments (0)
CHA posts emergency room wait times
Cambridge Health Alliance, a Harvard-affiliated public health-care system known as CHA, said it has unveiled new tools that alert patients to the wait times at its Cambridge, Somerville, and Whidden hospitals.
Average wait times are posted on CHA’s website, www.challiance.org, and they can also be accessed by texting “ertime” to 41411, the alliance said; as a result, people will have an idea of the wait times at each hospital before their arrival.
Its hospitals log roughly 100,000 emergency visits a year, and according to the alliance, its patients typically begin receiving care within five minutes of arrival.
The image with this post shows what a person might see on the alliance's website. The image was included with the alliance's press release.
Posted by globebusiness at 10:02 AM | Comments (0)
Comcast launches 3D channel
Fans of al fresco hockey and the Kings of Leon rock band will be eager to know that the objects of their devotion will be among the first offerings from Xfinity 3D, the new 24-hour 3D channel from Comcast Corp.
The channel will bring subscribers who own 3D television sets concerts from top-tier artists as well as sporting events, more than a dozen movies, and original 3D programming, Comcast said in a press release. The launch of Xfinity 3D is the latest in a series of 3D programming offered by Comcast.
The channel is set to officially debut with the telecasting of the 2011 Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic and a MTV World Stage concert by Kings of Leon on Feb. 20. (Tim Horton is shown at right.)
This year's NHL Hertiage Classic features the Montreal Canadiens and the Calgary Flames in an outdoor match-up at McMahon Stadium in Calgary. (At left is P.K. Subban, Montreal's promising young defenseman.)
For the record, the late Tim Horton was a practioner of old time hockey and the pride of Cochrane, Ontario, a hockey outpost nearly as glorious as Saskatoon or Flin Flon. A coffee-and-baked-goods chain also bears Horton's name. So it can be said that Horton is a legend in the twin spheres of hockey and doughnuts, a grand legacy for any Canadian (or for any North American, for that matter).
(The photos of Horton and Subban were taken from their Wikipedia entries.)
Posted by globebusiness at 9:22 AM | Comments (0)
Cathartes moves forward on Portwalk residences
Rendering provided by Cathartes.
Cathartes Private Investments, a Boston-based real estate development and investment company, said it has begun construction on the Residences at Portwalk, a mixed-use project in Portsmouth, N.H.
Portwalk’s Residence Inn by Marriott and the Portsmouth Harbor Events and Conference Center opened six months ago, and the new phase starting construction envisions 36 luxury apartments and 9,400 square feet of ground-level retail space, Cathartes said.
“We had to be creative, resourceful, and determined to keep Portwalk moving forward during this difficult economy,” Cathartes Private Investments principal Jeff Johnston said in a statement. “Our progress demonstrates Portwalk’s incredibly unique appeal, and the outstanding opportunities the Residences at Portwalk will offer prospective retailers and people looking for the ultimate downtown living experience. Our hotel and conference center are off to a tremendous start, and we expect the Residences at Portwalk to be equally successful.”
Posted by globebusiness at 8:38 AM | Comments (0)
Low-cost broadband Internet for Boston
Hundreds of low-income families are expected to benefit from a program intended to expand access to low-cost, high-speed Internet services to Boston residents.
The initiative will provide broadband Internet services to schools, libraries, youth centers, public housing, senior, and community centers as well as 2,800 eligible families.
It is funded by $4.3 million in stimulus funds from the Department of Commerce's Broadband Technology Opportunities Program. The Boston initiative is a partnership with Comcast Corp.
US Senator John Kerry is scheduled to join Congressman Michael Capuano, Mayor Thomas Menino, and other officials today to announce the program.
Kerry says access to high- speed Internet is "issue number one" because it simplifies everything from finding a job to taking a class. He says the Boston partnership will spread broadband Internet like wildfire.
Posted by globebusiness at 8:15 AM | Comments (0)
Staples: Time for an ergonomic touch-up
Comfy chairs make for happier, more productive workers, and an ergonomically correct keyboard doesn't hurt either.
So concludes a new survey from Staples Advantage, the business-to-business division of Staples Inc., the office-supply giant headquartered in Framingham.
Staples Advantage conducted the online survey in December, and it evaluated responses from more than 150 office workers in companies of all sizes and across industries, Staples said in a press release.
Nearly half of the respondents indicated that they would be more productive with a more comfortable work space, and just over a third said they would be a more pleasant person to work with.
“Ergonomics shouldn’t be overlooked until it gets to the point that employees are practically avoiding their own desks,” Staples Advantage senior vice president Jay Mutschler said in a statement. “Easy ergonomic fine-tuning can have a positive effect in the workplace – not the least of which is keeping employees healthy and happy throughout the workday.”
And --- surprise, surprise --- Staples Advantage just happens to be fully stocked with the latest office furniture and technology that, Staples says, can help create "happier, healthier, and more productive work environments."
What's more, Staples added that it employs "hundreds of furniture, interior design, and logistics professionals who work with organizations to create more productive, ergonomic, and aesthetic workspaces."
(The photo with this post was taken from the Staples website.)
Posted by globebusiness at 5:54 AM | Comments (0)
February 17, 2011
Winthrop man charged with $4m investment fraud
A Winthrop man today was charged with defrauding 20 investors of $4 million in a "life settlements" scheme, according to an 18-count indictment in federal court.
The US Attorney in Massachusetts alleged that Joseph Gennaco, 67, stole the money over six years, during which he promised people he was investing in life insurance policies on their behalf. In reality, he kept the money for his own use, or paid off other investors, federal prosecutors alleged.
Gennaco's lawyer was not immediately available to comment.
Gennaco, who also lived in Jupiter, Fla., faces up to 20 years in prison if he is found guilty, as well as a $250,000 fine.
Posted by globebusiness at 4:55 PM | Comments (0)
Whoopie pie war escalates
The whoopie pie war is on.
Pennsylvania residents are planning to hold a rally Saturday to protect their heritage and claim the whoopie pie as their own. The event is being organized by Lancaster resident Nick Martin in response to recent events in Maine, where lawmakers are seeking to designate the whoopie pie as the official treat of Maine. About 80 residents are planning to attend and support the cakey treat stuffed with a creamy filling, according to a new Facebook group "Rally to Save Our Whoopie!" (The image with this post was provided by this group.)
Amos Orcutt, president of the Maine Whoopie Pie Association, said he's surprised to hear about the rally and offered his apologies for starting an interstate squabble.
"I'm sorry I've upset the whole state of Pennsylvania," Orcutt said. "The Maine Whoopie Pie Association is really a very peaceful group, and we mean no harm."
Orcutt also suggested a compromise, given that the Downeasters call the confections "whoopies" and some Pennsylvania residents describe them as "gobs."
"I propose we have a negotiated settlement. Pennsylvania can have the gobs and we can have the whoopie pies," Orcutt said.
Lancaster's local paper recently urged Pennsylvania's new governor to take the whoopie pie up as one of his first causes.
The whoopie pie has also divided Mainers. Lawmakers initially proposed a bill to anoint the baked good as the state's official dessert. But some residents and legislators raised concerns over glorifying such an indulgence, given the high rate of obesity in Maine. Others felt wild blueberry pie would make a healthier alternative as the state's official dessert while staying true to Maine's roots as a top grower of wild blueberries.
A compromise emerged from the State and Local Government Committee on Monday, when lawmakers approved an amendment to make the whoopie pie the state's official treat, rather than the state's official dessert. Next, the whoopie pie will have to face a vote before the full State Legislature.
Posted by globebusiness at 3:59 PM | Comments (0)
Tufts Medical Center chief Ellen Zane to retire
Ellen Zane, who helped build Massachusetts' largest physicians' network at Partners HealthCare, then joined a competitor, Tufts Medical Center, to pull it from the brink of flatlining, is stepping down as the hospital's chief executive to join her husband in a long-delayed retirement.
The tenacious 59-year-old Waltham native, known for her pre-dawn e-mails to colleagues, sent a "bittersweet" one this afternoon to Tufts' 5,000 employees, announcing her retirement and describing her seven-year tenure there as one of the "greatest experiences" of her career, which also included a stint as chair of the Massachusetts Hospital Association. (Zane is shown at right in a Globe file photo.)
"Her heel print is very deep on the Massachusetts health care landscape," said Lynn Nicholas, the state hospital association's chief executive. "She is not a 'yes' person and is willing to challenge the status quo."
Nicholas said Zane, who started her career as a speech pathologist, is an "extraordinary communicator" with keen political instincts, who has been extremely effective in explaining the industry's growing challenges and needs to lawmakers and policy makers.
Zane's departure comes as the health care industry faces a sea change as state and national leaders attempt to curb soaring health care costs by transforming the way health care providers are paid. Zane's exit also continues a changing of the guard at Boston's five major teaching hospitals -- four will have new chief executives since last year.
Her last day will be Sept. 30, but the Board of Trustees has asked Zane to stay on as a vice chairman of the board and a paid consultant to the medical center for a year to assist with the transition in leadership.
Zane, who receives a salary and benefits of about $1.2 million, declined to say what she will be paid as a consultant. She said she will not receive any deferred compensation or other payments from her tenure as chief executive.
The hospital's board said it will put together a search committee and hopes to find a successor by Sept. 30, but Zane said she will stay on as chief executive if a replacement is not on board by then.
When Tufts University President Larry Bacow and the Tufts Medical Center board first called Zane in 2003 and asked her to consider joining the hospital, she had been planning to scale back at Partners and spend more time with her husband, Peter, who had recently retired. But she said the Tufts team was persuasive, and the stakes too high -- the potential financial collapse of one of Boston's premier teaching hospitals and its affiliated medical school -- so she jumped in "with both feet and my whole heart."
Still, Zane confessed in an interview this week that she was daunted by the task, asking her husband, 'What if I fail?"
"He said," she recalled, " 'For you, failure isn't an option.' "
While widely credited with helping to turn Tufts Medical Center around -- when she joined in 2004, its losses were greater than $18 million -- Zane said she is most proud of the "terrific team" she assembled while in charge. By comparison, the hospital's profit last year was $6.9 million.
"I am really good at hiring smart people," Zane said. "The rest of what happened here couldn't have been done without that team."
The team's most significant challenge ahead, she said will be finding ways to stay competitive despite the deep financial cutbacks for hospitals from the state's 2006 health care law, with more pending in the national legislation.
"Massachusetts has paid for health care reform for its citizens by cutting rates to hospitals," Zane said. "The cuts are draconian."
Zane's strategy to combat the dwindling dollars has been to partner with several community hospitals, and to bolster relations among the hospital's neighbors in Boston's Chinatown, which helped expand the patient base.
"All of these initiatives ... have caused Tufts Medical Center to be the fastest growing academic medical center (in the number of discharges) in Massachusetts," Tom Hollister, chair of Tufts Medical Center Board of Trustees, wrote in an e-mail today to employees.
The Massachusetts Nurses Association, which represents nurses at the hospital, however, criticized Zane's administration earlier this week, saying her strategy to hold down costs has translated to deep cuts in the ranks of nurses, which has led to a "deterioriation" in patient care.
Zane's plans for post-retirement hardly include time in a rocking chair. In addition to her consulting contract at Tufts, she said he has been invited to serve on the boards of several companies, will continue her busy public speaking schedule, and will likely write a book about, what she calls, her management "pearls" of advice, learned through the school of hard knocks.
Posted by globebusiness at 2:37 PM | Comments (0)
Boston Scientific launches stent systems in India
Medical device maker Boston Scientific Corp. said today it launched its Promus Element and Taxus Element drug-coated coronary stent systems in India.
The Natick company said India represents one of the fastest-growing markets in the world for drug-coated stents, with the number implanted annually estimated at more than 150,000.
"A key component of our growth strategy involves expanding our footprint in emerging markets like India, where we are making significant investments in sales, distribution and clinical infrastructure," CEO Ray Elliott said in a statement.
Stents are mesh metal tubes used to prop open arteries after they have been cleared of fatty plaque. The drug coatings are designed to keep scar tissue from growing through the mesh and causing blockage.
Boston Scientific's stent systems use a platinum chromium alloy, which the company says helps provide greater radial strength and flexibility.
The systems are not available for sale in the United States.
Boston Scientific shares rose 26 cents, or 3.7 percent, to $7.36 in afternoon trading.
Posted by globebusiness at 2:35 PM | Comments (0)
Second Wind ups presence Down Under
Second Wind, a Somerville company that develops wind measurement systems for such businesses as wind farms, said its presence in the Australian and New Zealand wind energy markets more than doubled in 2010.
Developers in those countries bought more of the company's Triton Sonic Wind Profilers and used the company's SkyServe satellite wind data service to view and analyze wind information, Second Wind said in a press release. The Triton is a remote sensing system that uses sound detection and ranging technology to measure wind in the areas that most affect a wind turbine's performance.
Second Wind's press release noted that the Australian wind power sector has grown by an average of 30 percent from year to year over the past decade.
Posted by globebusiness at 1:14 PM | Comments (0)
Alere records $1b 4Q loss on charge
Alere Inc. said today that it lost $1.04 billion in the fourth quarter as the medical diagnostics company recorded a hefty charge that offset revenue gains.
The Waltham company's loss after payment of preferred dividends, which equated to $12.24 per share, compared with a loss of $3.1 million, or 4 cents per share, in the final quarter of 2009. Revenue grew 6 percent to $578.5 million from $546.2 million, as acquisitions offset a big drop in North American influenza sales.
Adjusted income from continuing operations was 71 cents per share.
Analysts polled by FactSet expected, on average, earnings of 66 cents per share on $550.5 million in revenue.
Alere said it took a $1 billion charge tied to the impairment of goodwill in its Health Management segment. The company's results also included $1.6 million in restructuring charges and $1.4 million in acquisition-related costs.
Revenue from its Professional Diagnostics segment grew about 11 percent to $401.4 million, as acquisitions contributed $43.8 million. North American influenza sales dropped to $8.9 million from $39.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2009.
For the full year, Alere lost $1.04 billion after preferred dividends, or $12.33 per share, on $2.16 billion in revenue. In 2009, the company had earnings of $10.7 million, or 13 cents a share, on revenue of $1.92 billion.
Company shares fell 2.8 percent, or $1.11, to $38.63 in midday trading.
Posted by globebusiness at 12:25 PM | Comments (0)
Carriers back down on business-class hikes
Amid rising fuel prices, Delta Air Lines and its peers earlier this week kicked up a series of rates aimed at business travelers, a much-valued sweet spot for the airlines given that corporate clients tend to be a little less sensitive to prices and economic downturns than leisure customers.
The increases tended to focus on first-class, business-class, and 7-day advance-purchase tickets, which are used most heavily by corporate travelers.
But now the carriers, who are always looking over their shoulders at their competitors, apparently have backed down.
This from the Associated Press:
[F]are trackers say that US Airways had second thoughts and dropped the increase on Wednesday.Rick Seaney of FareCompare.com said Thursday that United and Continental then completely rolled back their increases, while Delta and American scaled back their hikes.
Jamie Baker, an analyst for JPMorgan Chase, said he was surprised that US Airways blocked the latest Delta increase after first matching it. US Airways did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Even though the Delta increase targeted corporate travelers who usually worry less about price, Baker said evidence is growing that many passengers may not be willing to pay higher fares. He noted that Southwest Airlines recently blocked a fourth effort to raise fares.
Posted by globebusiness at 12:20 PM | Comments (0)
Delta fare sale for new Logan-London service
Mind the gap, London lovers. To mark its new service from Boston to London, beginning March 26, Delta Airlines is offering an introductory fare of a $400 round-trip.
Tickets must be purchased at delta.com by March 1 for travel beginning March 26-April 17 or May 1-15 and completed by June 15.
Delta isn't growing much domestically this year but is focusing on international markets such as Heathrow Airport in London and Haneda Airport in Tokyo.
Posted by globebusiness at 11:03 AM | Comments (0)
Trigen changes name to Veolia Energy
Trigen Energy Corp. said it is changing its name to Veolia Energy so it will have the same name as its parent company.
Another reason for the name change is to reflect the company's "broader line of energy solutions,” Veolia Energy said.
In 2007, Veolia Environnement, a French energy conglomerate, said it would pay $788 million for Thermal North America Inc., owner of Trigen Boston and utilities in Atlanta, Baltimore, Philadelphia, and five other cities that pipe steam to office buildings and hotels for heating and air conditioning, according to a Globe story of four years ago. Veolia made Boston its North American headquarters.
Today the company announced the completion of the transition of the Trigen brand name to the Veolia Energy name across the Continental United States.
According to the company, Veolia Energy owns and operates the largest portfolio of heating, cooling, and cogeneration networks in the US market.
"Residents of Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Oklahoma City, Philadelphia, Trenton, and Tulsa will now see the Veolia Energy brand name and logo on energy plants, company vehicles, and the hundreds of personnel that maintain the steam and chilled water distribution networks in the streets, manholes, and facilities of the central business districts," the company said in a press release.
Posted by globebusiness at 10:17 AM | Comments (0)
Boston area CPI is up 1.1 percent from a year ago
The Consumer Price Index for the Boston-Brockton-Nashua area increased 1.1 percent over the 12-month period that ended in January, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today.
The increase, the bureau said, was largely due to an increase in energy costs. For the 12-month period, gas prices rose 14.3 percent, the bureau said. The index for food increased 0.9 percent. Minus food and energy, the index was up 0.2 percent year-over-year, the bureau said.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:45 AM | Comments (0)
Fidelity: IRA Roth conversions soared in 2010
Fidelity Investments reported a big spike in December Roth IRA conversions as investors scrambled to take advantage of Roth IRA tax benefits.
Fidelity, a Boston mutual funds company, is also a big provider of Individual Retirement Accounts, or IRAs, and workplace retirement savings plans.
New rules recently went into effect that made more people eligible for Roth IRAs, and one result was that Fidelity reported a fourfold increase in Roth IRA conversions in 2010 among its customers versus 2009. Nearly one-third of Fidelity's Roth IRA conversions in 2010 occurred during the month of December, Fidelity added.
In a traditional IRA, people make contributions to a retirement account with money they may be able to deduct on their tax returns, and any earnings potentially grow tax-deferred until they are withdrawn in retirement.
In a Roth IRA, by comparison, people make contributions to an account with money they have already paid taxes on, and so their money may potentially grow tax-free, with tax-free withdrawals in retirement, provided that certain conditions are met, according to Fidelity definitions of IRAs.
"For many investors, whether or not to convert to a Roth IRA is just the beginning of the discussion on potential ways to maximize their assets by minimizing taxes in retirement - and we expect these conversations to continue into 2011," Chris McDermott, Fidelity Investments senior vice president of investor education, retirement, and financial planning, said in a statement.
To read Fidelity's press release, please click here.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:22 AM | Comments (0)
One Laptop per Child teams up with African Union
Photo from One Laptop per Child's website shows children in Peru using foundation laptops.
One Laptop per Child, the Cambridge foundation that seeks to offer inexpensive computers to children in developing countries, said it is partnering with the African Union to deliver laptops to primary school students throughout Africa.
In a statement, Matt Keller, vice president of global advocacy at One Laptop per Child, or OLPC, refers to the African Union by its initials, AU.
"OLPC’s partnership with the AU represents another significant step toward a world in which every child has access to a world-class education, to the world's body of knowledge, and to each other,” Keller said. “The AU is dedicating itself not simply to One Laptop per Child, but to a world in which the children become agents of change – making things, teaching each other and their families and affecting the social development of their community.”
Nicholas Negroponte, chairman emeritus of the MIT Media Laboratory, established the One Laptop per Child foundation. He had hoped to sell millions of the original laptop to countries in the developing world for $100 each.
As of last fall, the organization had sold about two million of the devices, but a Globe story in October noted the foundation has not managed to get the laptop's price much below $200.
Posted by globebusiness at 8:25 AM | Comments (0)
Signature Office Park taps Jones Lang LaSalle
Jones Lang LaSalle said it has been named leasing agent for Signature Office Park at 50 Dunham Rd in Beverly, which was originally designed as a corporate headquarters business campus for Parker Brothers.
The owner and developer of the four-story building with 103,000 square feet of space is Wight & Company. The building is near Route 128 and North Shore Music Theatre
Current tenants include Atari, Fantastic Sam’s, and Gordon College, said Jones Lang LaSalle, a financial and professional services firm specializing in real estate.
Posted by globebusiness at 7:53 AM | Comments (0)
Aveo, Astellas in potential $1.3b cancer drug deal
Aveo Pharmaceuticals Inc. of Cambridge announced a partnership that could be worth more than $1.3 billion with Astellas Pharma on Aveo's lead drug candidate, the cancer treatment tivozanib.
Japanese drugmaker Astellas agreed to pay Aveo $125 million up front. Aveo could receive $575 million if tivozanib reaches clinical development and regulatory milestones, while sales milestone payments could be worth another $780 million.
The companies will equally divide profits and expenses in North America and Europe. In other regions, Astellas will handle all development and marketing. If the drug is approved in the United States, Aveo will get royalties of more than 10 percent on sales.
Aveo agreed to handle sales of tivozanib in North America, and Astellas will be in charge of sales in the European Union. Kyowa Hakko Kirin discovered tivozanib and holds the rights to the drug in Asia.
The upfront payment includes a $75 million licensing payment and $50 million in research funding. Aveo is running a late-stage clinical trial of tivozanib as a treatment for a type of advanced kidney cancer called renal cell carcinoma, and it expects to report data from that study in the middle of this year.
The drug is designed to affect three types of vascular endothelial growth factor receptors, which are involved in the formation of new blood vessels. Without the new blood vessels, the cancer cells are starved of blood and nutrients.
The late-stage trial compares tivozanib to Nexavar, a drug marketed by Onyx Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Bayer Healthcare as a treatment for kidney cancer and liver cancer.
The Cambridge company is also testing tivozanib as a treatment for colorectal cancer, gastrointestinal cancers, breast cancer and lung cancer -- alone or in combination with other drugs. The drug was awarded orphan drug status in Europe, meaning that if tivozanib is approved in that market as a treatment for renal cell carcinoma, competing drugs will be barred from the market for up to 10 years.
The companies said approximately 200,000 people worldwide were diagnosed with renal cell carcinoma in 2010, and about 100,000 patients with the disease died. It accounts for about 90 percent of kidney cancer cases and is the eighth-most common cancer in the U.S.
The National Institutes of Health say chemotherapy and radiation treatment are generally not effective against the disease. Approved drugs for renal cell carcinoma include Nexavar and Pfizer Inc.'s drug Sutent. Aveo and Astellas said current therapies extend survival by less than a year and have significant side effects. In a mid-stage clinical trial, patients who had had a kidney removed and were treated with tivozanib had median survival of 14.8 months before they died or their disease progression resumed.
Posted by globebusiness at 6:06 AM | Comments (0)
February 16, 2011
Massport chief Thomas Kinton to retire, collect $450k in sick leave
Thomas Kinton will retire as the executive director of the Massachusetts Port Authority in June, Massport said today.
The delayed departure will give the board time to find a successor and to allow Kinton to collect hundreds of thousands of dollars in unused sick time. Kinton is 59.
The Globe reported last year that Kinton earns a base salary of $295,000 a year. On retirement, Kinton said that he will receive about $450,000 in unused sick leave. He is grandfathered under an old Massport policy that allows employees to receive 100 percent of the cash value of their accumulated sick days
According to Massport's 2009 compensation report, Kinton had accumulated 478 sick days. His pension will equal 67 percent of his salary in his highest-earning years, Kinton said.
Posted by globebusiness at 1:20 PM | Comments (0)
Genzyme 4Q profit soars on revenue growth, gains
CAMBRIDGE -- Biotech drugmaker Genzyme Corp., which just agreed to sell itself to Sanofi-Aventis SA for more than $20 billion in cash, reported a big jump in fourth-quarter net income due to strong revenue growth, lower costs, and gains on divested businesses.
Genzyme said sales of its treatments for genetic diseases climbed as it recovered from manufacturing problems, including viral contamination and particles of trash in some of its drugs. Those problems had hurt its sales, constrained supplies, and ratcheted up costs in the fourth quarter of 2009.
The company said it is now producing enough of its drug Cerezyme to get full supplies to all currently treated patients. Supplies of its drug Fabrazyme reached 82 percent of demand in the fourth quarter. Cerezyme is the company's best-selling drug. It treats Gaucher disease, an enzyme disorder that can result in liver and neurological problems. Fabrazyme treats Fabry disease, an inherited disorder caused by the buildup of a particular type of fat in the body's cells. Fabrazyme is Genzyme's second best-selling product.
The company said its net income grew to $471.9 million, or $1.76 per share, for the last three months of the year. That's up sharply from $23.2 million, or 9 cents per share, a year ago. Excluding acquisition costs, stock-based compensation expenses and $400.9 million worth of income from discontinued operations, Genzyme would have earned 82 cents per share in the latest period, still up sharply from 29 cents in the prior-year period.
In the fourth quarter, Genzyme completed the sale of its genetics business, and in this quarter sold its diagnostics business and agreed to sell its pharmaceuticals business.
Revenue climbed 23 percent to $1.15 billion from $938.3 million.
The results missed the average estimates of analysts polled by FactSet, which had forecast an adjusted profit of 85 cents per share and $1.16 billion in revenue.
Total revenue for the company's personalized genetic health business rose 45 percent to $505.6 million. The U.S. launch of its Pompe disease treatment Lumizyme also boosted its sales. Pompe disease interferes with muscle development and can cause deadly respiratory problems.
Genzyme said its biosurgery revenue rose 9 percent to $170.7 million because of greater sales of its osteoarthritis drugs Synvisc and Synvisc-One. Hematology and oncology revenue grew 6 percent to $178.7 million, and renal and endocrinology revenue increased 12 percent to $288.9 million.
After months of on-and-off talks, French drugmaker Sanofi-Aventis is buying Genzyme for $20.1 billion, or $74 per share, in cash. Genzyme shareholders will also have the rights to receive additional cash payments if the company meets targets on production, sales and product approvals. The companies expect the sale to close during the second quarter.
Shares of Genzyme rose $1.12 to $75.42 in morning trading.
Posted by globebusiness at 1:06 PM | Comments (0)
Southwest sparks fare war
Let's call it a fare war. Southwest launched a big sale a few days ago and yesterday, we pointed out that US Airways had jumped on.
Now Smartertravel.com is reporting that American, Continental, Delta, JetBlue, and United are now in too.
To get discount fares on Southwest and US Airways you must purchase before Feb. 18 for travel through late May. Smartertravel suggests that the competitors will likely drop discounts around then too.
And here's a new one from Southwest: It's no secret that Boston-Baltimore is perhaps the most competitive route out of Logan. Southwest is putting Baltimore flights on sale with one-way prices starting at $59.
Besides Logan, this deal also applies to T.F. Green outside Providence and to Manchester. To get discounted prices you must purchase before March 15 for travel March 3-May 25. But travel is limited to Tuesdays and Wednesdays, with a blackout day of April 26.
Posted by globebusiness at 1:01 PM | Comments (0)
Judge to rule on Sox soccer sale dispute
A British judge will rule Thursday whether Liverpool's former American owners can sue in the United States over the enforced sale of the soccer club to the Boston Red Sox ownership group.
Tom Hicks and George Gillett Jr. claim that an "epic swindle" by Liverpool directors and the club's lenders led to a cut-price sale of $476 million to New England Sports Ventures.
The former owners' legal team argued in London's High Court last week that an order preventing them from pursuing damages outside Britain or the European Union should be lifted.
The "anti-suit" order was issued in October to stop Hicks and Gillett from pursuing a case in Texas that would have prevented the sale to John Henry's NESV.
Lawyers for Royal Bank of Scotland and the former club directors who sanctioned the sale argue that Hicks and Gillett cannot sue in the U.S. because the owners' nationality is the only connection to the country, highlighting that Liverpool is an English club.
Justice Christopher Floyd will also rule Thursday whether Martin Broughton, the former club chairman, can seek damages against Hicks over public accusations against him. RBS also applied to the court for orders which would block Hicks and Gillett from suing over the sale.
Hicks and Gillett were forced to put the club up for sale in April after struggling to meet the repayments resulting from their 2007 leveraged takeover.
Debts had reached $380 million to $450 million, depending on the estimate, at the time of the sale. Hicks and Gillett want damages for the losses they incurred as a result of the buyout.
Posted by globebusiness at 12:23 PM | Comments (0)
Borders to close 200 stores in US; 6 in Mass.
Borders, the nation's No. 2 bookseller that has been saddled by debt, filed for bankruptcy protection today and announced plans to close 200 of its 642 stores over the next few weeks.
Six of the 23 stores in Massachusetts will be closed, including ones in Peabody, Hyannis, Holyoke, Burlington, Wareham, and a Boston location on Boylston Street.
All of the stores closed will be superstores, Borders spokeswoman Mary Davis said. The 40-year-old company also operates smaller Waldenbooks and Borders Express stores.
Clearance sales could begin as early as this weekend, according to documents filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New York. Borders said it is losing about $2 million a day at the stores it plans to close.
Borders Group Inc. President Mike Edwards said in a written statement that cautious consumer spending, negotiations with publishers and other vendors and a lack of liquidity made it clear Borders "does not have the capital resources it needs to be a viable competitor."
Borders plans to operate normally and honor gift cards and its loyalty program as it reorganizes.
According to the Chapter 11 filing, Borders had $1.28 billion in assets and $1.29 billion in debts as of Dec. 25.
It owes tens of millions of dollars to publishers, including $41.1 million to Penguin Putnam, $36.9 million to Hachette Book Group, $33.8 million to Simon & Schuster and $33.5 million to Random House.
The filing was expected, but it is far from clear if it will be enough to save the company.
"Chapter 11 does not solve any business problems at all," said Jim McTevia, managing partner of turnaround firm McTevia & Associates, in Bingham Farms, Mich. "They are going to have to be an entirely different company than the one that went into bankruptcy protection if they want to emerge successfully."
It has been a long fall for the Ann Arbor, Mich., company, which 15 years ago appeared to be the future of bookselling.
But big-box bookstores have struggled as competition has become increasingly tough as books become available in more locations, from Costco to Walmart, online sales grow and electronic books gain in popularity.
Borders also suffered from a series of errors: failing to catch onto the growing importance of the Web and electronic books, not reacting quickly enough to declining music and DVD sales, and hiring four CEOs in 5 years without book-selling experience.
Even as the book industry shifted around it, Borders seemed to be in denial and focused on adding superstores, said Michael Norris, senior trade analyst at Simba Information.
"Books and content just became so available at so many other locations, online and offline, the 'grow, rinse, repeat' mindset just wouldn't work anymore," he said.
In addition, Americans are simply buying fewer books. Sales fell nearly 5 percent in 2010 to 717.8 million from 751.7 million last year, according to Nielsen, which tracks about 70 percent of book sales but doesn't include Walmart stores.
At its peak in 2003, Borders operated 1,249 stores under the Borders and Waldenbooks names, but now it operates barely half that. Its annual revenue has fallen by about $1 billion since 2006, the last year it reported a profit.
Borders' rival Barnes & Noble, which has 29.8 percent of the book market compared with Borders' 14.3 percent according to IBIS World, has done better by adapting to e-commerce and electronic books more quickly and keeping management stable.
Posted by kstringer at 11:30 AM | Comments (0)
Ocean Spray debuts carbonated fruit drink line
Ocean Spray, the cranberry and citrus growers cooperative with headquarters in Lakeville and Middleborough, said it is introducing Ocean Spray Sparkling Juice Drinks.
Available in two original and diet flavors, Cranberry and Pomegranate Blueberry, the Sparkling Juice Drinks are carbonated beverage options, the cooperative said.
“Whether it's our Light, Diet, Cran-Energy, 100 percent juice, or traditional cranberry or grapefruit, we’re always looking for new ways to innovate and highlight the year-round versatility of the cranberry,” Larry Martin, vice president of marketing at Ocean Spray, said in a statement. “With the launch of our Sparkling Juice Drinks, we hope to provide the right mix of the bubbly refreshment consumers crave with the tasty goodness of Ocean Spray juices.”
(The photo with this post was provided by Ocean Spray.)
Posted by globebusiness at 11:09 AM | Comments (0)
Dunkin’ joe rates kudos from loyal fans
Dunkin' Donuts said today that it has been recognized as tops in coffee customer loyalty for the fifth straight year.
A research firm called Brand Keys has developed a set of metrics that it claims can measure customer loyalty. In the coffee category, coffee from Dunkin' Donuts, the Canton-based coffee-and-baked-goods chain, once again was number on the Brand Keys Customer Loyalty Engagement Index, Dunkin' said in a press release.
The release included a statement from John Costello, chief global customer and marketing officer at Dunkin' Brands, parent company of Dunkin' Donuts.
"We are very proud to have earned the top ranking for customer loyalty five years running," Costello said.
(The photo with this post is a company handout.)
Posted by globebusiness at 10:09 AM | Comments (0)
New shop aims to truffle Newbury St. ambiance
An Italian company known for its truffles is planning to open a gourmet-food and skin-care boutique that promises to bring "the Mediterranean experience" to Boston's chic Newbury Street.
Sabatino North America is forming a retail division with plans to open several stores in such cities as New York, Los Angeles, and London, along with an online store. Under the nameplate of Sabatino&Co Roma, the Boston store is set to open March 24 in 1,200 square feet of space at 130 Newbury St., a site between Clarendon and Dartmouth streets previously occupied by a cosmetic store named Shu Uemura, a Sabatino spokeswoman said.
Aside from truffles, Sabatino&Co Roma plans to stock such products as gourmet olive oil and vinegar along with a skin-care line, which includes a truffle-based "body milk," the spokeswoman said.
“Today, as people are becoming more sophisticated and adventurous in their cooking at home, the appreciation and demand for our gourmet natural food products has grown,” Sabatino&Co chief executive Gabriel Balestra said in a statement. “For generations, my family has been bringing all natural products from our fields directly to your home. Today, through Sabatino&Co, with its online store and retail boutiques, we will expand our product line and reach, making the Mediterranean experience available to people around the globe.”
Posted by globebusiness at 9:49 AM | Comments (0)
Termeer: Genzyme sale is 'a new beginning'
Genzyme Corp. chief executive Henri A. Termeer this morning hailed the company's sale to Sanofi-Aventis SA for $20.1 billion plus milestone payments as "a new beginning," while his Sanofi counterpart said that the French drug maker will likely retain the Genzyme brand in marketing newly acquired treatments for rare genetic disorders.
Related
- 2/17 Genzyme may lose some Mass. jobs
- 2/17 Genzyme patients hope sale won't sever bonds
- 2/17 | Boston Capital A little virus played key role in a big deal
- 02/16 Termeer: Genzyme sale is 'a new beginning'
- 02/16 Genzyme agrees to $20.1b sale to drug giant
- Photos Notable mergers and acquisitions in Mass.
- 02/07 Sanofi review delays deal
- 02/01 Sanofi increases offer
- 02/01 Steven Syre: Checking Sanofi's track record
- 01/25 Stalled deal brews doubts
- 01/12 CEOs offer few details
- 01/10 With Genzyme, Sanofi sees a better future
- 12/21 Genzyme talks up new multiple sclerosis drug
- 08/31 Genzyme says no to Sanofi’s $18.5b offer
- More Genzyme coverage
The executives said they expect the deal, approved by both companies' boards yesterday, will close early in the second quarter. The timetable will hinge on how quickly Sanofi can issue "contingent value rights" to Genzyme stockowners for each share they own. The so-called CVRs will be tradeable securities whose ultimate value will depend on two factors: whether Genzyme's experimental multiple sclerosis drug Lemtrada is approved by regulators and meets future sales targets, and whether its current drugs Cerezyme and Fabrazyme, which treat the enzyme deficiencies Gaucher and Fabry diseases, meet production milestones this year.
Under the financial terms of the deal, Genzyme and Sanofi shareowners will share in the gain if the value of the CVRs rise over time. If all the milestones are met, it could potentially raise the value of the deal from the $74 a share paid up front to about $78 a share, according to analysts.
Investors issued the new securities will receive $1 for each CVR if Cerezyme and Fabrazyme production levels are met in 2011; $1 per CVR upon Food and Drug Administration approval of Lemtrada for multiple sclerosis; $2 per CVR if sales of Lemtrada exceed $400 million within specified periods and geographies; $3 per CVR if global Lemtrada sales top $1.8 billion; $4 per share more if they exceed $2.3 billion; and, another $3 if they exceed $2.8 billion.
Viehbacher and Termeer said they will begin working this afternoon on plans to integrate the two companies. When the transaction is completed, Termeer will retire from Genzyme, although he will continue to work with Sanofi on post-merger issues.
"We're clearly changing from a phase of the negotiations to thinking how we're going to bring the two companies together for the benefit of patients," Viehbacher said.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:04 AM | Comments (0)
Constant Contact buys New York firm
Constant Contact Inc., a Waltham firm that provides marketing services to small organizations, announced the acquisition of Bantam Live, a provider of customer relationship management, or CRM, services, for a cash purchase price of $15 million.
New York-based Bantam Live provides Constant Contact with a social CRM platform, Constant Contact said in a press release, and the acquisition will enable Constant Contact to offer small organizations a platform to launch and monitor customer engagement campaigns across multiple channels, including e-mail, social media, and events.
Posted by globebusiness at 8:38 AM | Comments (0)
LoJack reports 4Q profit
LoJack Corp., a Westwood company known for its vehicle recovery systems, reported fourth quarter net income of $2.8 million, or $0.15 per diluted share, compared with a net loss of $2.3 million, or $0.13 per share, in the fourth quarter of the prior year.
On a year-to-year basis, revenue for the fourth quarter increased 12 percent to $40 million, LoJack said in a press release.
Richard T. Riley, LoJack chairman and chief executive said in a statement, "We are pleased with our growth in revenue for the fourth quarter as the strong increase in our international business combined with a solid performance in our US auto business drove double digit growth for the quarter."
For the full year of 2010, the company said it had a net loss of $18.3 million, or $1.06 per share, compared with a net loss of $34.7 million, or $2.02 per share in 2009, as 2010 includes a non-cash charge of $15.1 million, or $0.87 per diluted share, to establish a valuation allowance against US deferred tax assets.
For the full year, revenue increased 9 percent to $146.6 million, the company added.
Posted by globebusiness at 6:15 AM | Comments (0)
February 15, 2011
Cynosure narrows 4Q loss, as revenue climbs 16%
Cynosure Inc., the cosmetic treatment equipment maker, today reported a smaller loss for the fourth quarter, helped by growing revenue and a drop in operating expenses. Its shares rose 15 percent in afternoon trading.
The Westford, company makes aesthetic treatment systems used to remove hair and unwanted fat and treat vascular lesions, among other things. The company said higher product demand pushed its revenue growth in the fourth quarter. North American laser product sales were up 17 percent compared to 2009.
"Although financing remains difficult for many aesthetic practitioners, the relationships we have established with certain financial institutions and third-party financing sources are gradually beginning to improve access to credit for our customers," chief executive Michael Davin said in a statement.
Davin said the company's "strong balance sheet and aggressive cost-reduction initiatives put us on solid financial footing for the coming year" and leave the company "optimistic about the prospects for our business in 2011." But he gave no specific forecast.
Cynosure reported a net loss of $798,000, or 6 cents per share, in the three months that ended Dec. 31. That compares to a net loss of $14.5 million, or $1.14 per share, in the final quarter of 2009. Revenue increased 16 percent to $22.3 million from $19.3 million.
The company trimmed its operating loss to about $600,000 from $5.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2009. Operating expenses fell 8 percent to $13.1 million.
For the full year, Cynosure reported a net loss of $5.5 million, or 44 cents per share, versus a loss of $22.8 million, or $1.79 a share a year ago. Annual revenue rose to $81.8 million from $72.8 million a year ago.
Its shares rose $1.84, or 15.4 percent, to $13.79 in afternoon trading.
Posted by globebusiness at 3:17 PM | Comments (0)
Alkermes says constipation drug met goal in study
WALTHAM -- Alkermes Inc. said today that a clinical trial shows one of its drug candidates can relieve constipation caused by use of opioid pain medications without reducing the effectiveness of the pain drugs.
Alkermes said the two largest doses of its drug, which is designated ALKS 37, were both significantly more effective than a placebo. The company plans to move the drug into more advanced clinical testing, starting a new program by the middle of this year. Opioid drugs are often used to treat severe chronic pain, but the drugs often cause constipation and bowel problems.
The clinical trial involved 87 patients who were taking opioid medications for chronic, non-cancer pain. The patients were given either ALKS 37 or a placebo once per day for two weeks. Patients who took the two highest doses, 30 milligrams per day and 100 milligrams per day, had a significant increase in their number of bowel movements per week compared to patients who took the placebo. Alkermes said patients who took the 100 milligram dose also had a significant increase in completed bowel movements per week.
The company said patients who took ALKS 37 did not report an increase in pain and did not use more pain medication than patients who took the placebo.
The most common side effects of the drug were abdominal pain and diarrhea. Alkermes said it will present full results from the study at a medical conference.
In afternoon trading, Alkermes stock rose 35 cents, or 2.5 percent, to $14.35.
Posted by globebusiness at 2:46 PM | Comments (0)
Genzyme sale to Sanofi said to be close
Genzyme Corp. has struck an agreement in principle to be bought by French drug maker Sanofi-Aventis SA for more than $19 billion plus potential milestone payments, in a deal that could be unveiled as early as tomorrow, according to two people briefed on the negotiations.
Related
- 2/17 Genzyme may lose some Mass. jobs
- 2/17 Genzyme patients hope sale won't sever bonds
- 2/17 | Boston Capital A little virus played key role in a big deal
- 02/16 Termeer: Genzyme sale is 'a new beginning'
- 02/16 Genzyme agrees to $20.1b sale to drug giant
- Photos Notable mergers and acquisitions in Mass.
- 02/07 Sanofi review delays deal
- 02/01 Sanofi increases offer
- 02/01 Steven Syre: Checking Sanofi's track record
- 01/25 Stalled deal brews doubts
- 01/12 CEOs offer few details
- 01/10 With Genzyme, Sanofi sees a better future
- 12/21 Genzyme talks up new multiple sclerosis drug
- 08/31 Genzyme says no to Sanofi’s $18.5b offer
- More Genzyme coverage
The people briefed on the discussions said the late stages of the bargaining centered on how to structure a tradeable security called a contingent value right that would have an initial value which could rise based on the eventual market performance of a Genzyme experimental drug to treat multiple sclerosis. The contingent value right would be in addition to Sanofi paying $74 a share for Genzyme.
Genzyme is best known for its drugs Cerezyme and Fabrazyme, which treat rare genetic disorders and can cost hundreds of thousands of dollar per patient annually.
Sanofi, the world's fourth-largest pharmaceutical company, has been seeking to expand its pipeline of drugs.
Shares of Genzyme jumped 3.7 percent to $74.43 on the Nasdaq exchange early this afternoon.
Posted by globebusiness at 1:45 PM | Comments (0)
AirTran offers two-day fare sale
As part of the strategy to fill seats, airlines have trimmed schedules and fleets and more carefully control sales -- meaning that they tend to be short. This gives the carriers a chance to ensure a certain number of seats will be sold, particularly those that are harder to sell because of time of week or year, without giving away the store.
For this sale, the lowest prices will be available on off-peak days, which in the Continental United States are Monday-Thursday. For those bound for the Caribbean, Bermuda and Mexico, off-peak fares are available Sunday-Wednesdays.
And there are some blackout days. All the fine print is here.
To give you some idea of what kinds of savings the carrier is offering, here are some one-way sample fares from Boston: Aruba $154, Atlanta $99, Baltimore $49, Bermuda $134, Charlotte $109, Chicago (Midway) $114, Dallas/Ft. Worth $109, Denver $149, Detroit $119, Fort Lauderdale $99, Fort Myers $104, Houston (Hobby) $109, Key West $139, Las Vegas $159, Los Angeles (LAX) $159, Miami $104, Minneapolis/St. Paul $109, Nassau $104, New Orleans $110, Orlando $99, Pensacola/Gulf Coast $99, Phoenix $149, Raleigh/Durham $94 San Francisco $159, Sarasota/Bradenton $99, Seattle $159, Tampa $99, and West Palm Beach $99.
Posted by globebusiness at 11:03 AM | Comments (0)
Fidelity is no longer tops in customer satisfaction
The online brokerage business of Fidelity Investments is no longer tops in customer satisfaction, according to a new survey.
Charles Schwab overtook Fidelity for the top score in the new American Customer Satisfaction Index, released today. It is the first time Fidelity did not have the top score since the survey started tracking Fidelity five years ago.
The figures raise question about whether Fidelity's recent efforts to cut costs have hurt its ability to serve customers. Fidelity has cut its global headcount by nearly 10,000 jobs since 2007 in an effort to trim its expenses and boost profits.
However, the changes this year were relatively modest. The company scored a 78 in customer satisfaction (out of a 100) this year, down 1 point from last year and 6 points from 2007. Charles Schwab, which was tied with Fidelity last year, beat Fidelity by two points with a score of 80 this year.
The survey also included Etrade and TD Ameritrade. Etrade made the biggest gains, but still ranked last.
The index, produced by ACSI LLC, was founded by the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business.
Posted by globebusiness at 10:59 AM | Comments (0)
Stop & Shop helps the Greater Boston Food Bank
Stop & Shop Supermarket Co., the Quincy-based chain that operates nearly 400 stores in the Northeast, said it recently donated more than $226,000 to the Greater Boston Food Bank through its annual Food for Friends program.
Stop & Shop said it raised more than $2 million in 2010, with 60 percent of the funds distributed directly to hundreds of local food pantries adopted by stores in each community; the remaining funds were allocated to regional state food banks.
Posted by globebusiness at 10:42 AM | Comments (0)
Buy National Amusements tix on your smartphone
National Amusements Inc., a Norwood-based chain that operates more than 950 movie screens, said it has unveiled its new mobile application for iPhone and Blackberry users.
According to a National Amusements press release, it is the first cinema chain in the Northeast to offer a dedicated smartphone app to its customers.
"The app allows users to instantly locate their nearest theater using GPS and securely purchase tickets to any National Amusements theater in the United States at all Showcase, Multiplex, and Cinema de Lux locations, as well as view trailers and movie synopses, check show times, and get insider access to special deals," National Amusements said.
Posted by globebusiness at 10:13 AM | Comments (0)
Boston Scientific endows Yale scholarship
Boston Scientific Corp., the Natick-based medical device maker, said it has established a $1.7 million endowment to fund a scholarship at the Yale School of Medicine.
The scholarship honors the late Donald S. Baim, an interventional cardiologist and Yale School of Medicine graduate who served as Boston Scientific's chief medical and scientific officer from 2006 until 2009, when he died unexpectedly, the company said in a press release.
Beginning in August, a Baim scholarship will be awarded annually to one incoming first-year medical student at Yale School of Medicine to cover half of his or her tuition for four years; Yale will seek scholarship candidates partly based on their financial need, Boston Scientific said.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:37 AM | Comments (0)
Home Depot to hire 1,200 seasonal workers locally
This photo of a remodeled kitchen was taken from Home Depot's website.
Home Depot, the large Atlanta-based home improvement chain, said it plans to hire "more than 60,000 seasonal associates," including 1,200 in the Boston area, as it gears up for its busiest shopping days of the year.
(Job candidates can apply online at www.careers.homedepot.com or at an in-store kiosk at a local Home Depot store, the chain added.)
Cranberry and pumpkin growers have Thanksgiving. Florists have Valentine's Day. And Home Depot says it has Spring Black Friday, a time when millions of home remodelers come out of hibernation and kick off home improvement projects.
As many shoppers know, Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving, a day deemed by many to be the official start of the Christmas shopping season and often one of the busiest shopping days of the year. For a home improvement chain, though, some of its busiest days are in the spring. After lying low all winter, the home-improvement type can't wait to bust out the power tools to build an eco-friendly gazebo or gussy up the patio or rec room.
To handle all this pent-up demand, Home Depot plans to hire extra workers as it gets ready for its Spring Black Friday.
For the record, a Home Depot press release noted that its Spring Black Friday is something of a moveable feast.
As the chain said in a press release: "Spring Black Friday will be implemented on a market-by-market basis based on climate by geography. During four different weekends in spring, prices on hundreds of the most sought after spring products will be significantly reduced including: a variety of live goods and lawn care; outdoor power; eco-friendly gardening products; and patio and grills."
The press release included a statement from Craig Menear, Home Depot's executive vice president for merchandising.
"As we have stated in the past, spring is our Christmas, and traffic is at its highest during this season," Menear said. "Hiring seasonal associates and offering door busting deals will ensure our customers have all of the service, know-how and value they need as they look to take on outdoor projects to improve the appearance of their home."
Home improvement demand could be up this year after many projects were put on hold during the recession.
Last month, the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University issued a report that concluded that spending on home improvement is projected to increase at an inflation-adjusted 3.5 percent average annual rate over the next few years.
While the projected increase on home remodeling expenditures is below the pace that was recorded during the housing boom, it represents a sharp recovery from the recent downturn, the center's report said.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:06 AM | Comments (0)
Obama, Palin now available as Throttle Neck dolls
Every year, hundreds of hopeful toy makers flock to the American International Toy Fair, now underway in New York City, convinced that against all odds, their new toy will be a winner.
One of this year's hopefuls is Maureen O'Leary of Charlestown, the creator of Throttle Necks, talking 5.5-inch dolls that caricature such political figures as President Obama and Sarah Palin. (Don't call them action figures. All they do is talk.) Like cold beers in a honky-tonk, O'Leary's dolls have long necks --- necks that make them ideal for throttling. "They talk. You throttle" is the O'Leary sales pitch.
The Obama doll says such things as, "Change," "Yes, we can," and other bromides designed to get Obama critics into a throttling mood. (The images with this post were included with O'Leary's press release. Click here to see a company sales pitch on Youtube.)
But with its ever-changing cast of characters, politics can keep a doll maker scrambling. According to Sherry Alpert, O'Leary's publicist, O'Leary is rushing a John Boehner doll into production. The doll of the new Speaker of the House will be programmed to cry on command.
No word yet on whether O'Leary is working on a Scott Brown doll.
Posted by globebusiness at 8:28 AM | Comments (0)
Intel taps Skyhook
Intel Corp., the semiconductor chip maker, will use Skyhook Wireless software to deliver advanced positioning capabilities for app developers creating applications for Windows and MeeGo-based devices, Boston-based Skyhook said today.
Intel will use Skyhook software as part of a license and distribution agreement that makes Skyhook’s Core Engine hybrid location platform available to the Intel AppUpSM center through the Intel AppUp developer program, Skyhook said.
According to a Skyhook press release, the company's software-only location system determines precise device location by synthesizing data from Wi-Fi access points, GPS satellites, and cell towers. Skyhook's Core Engine provides positioning to millions of consumer mobile devices and applications, the company said.
Posted by globebusiness at 6:09 AM | Comments (0)
February 14, 2011
Logan Express offers school-vacation discount
Aiming to reduce airport traffic during one of its busiest period of the year, Massport is offering a special February vacation week parking rate of $22 for its Logan Express bus service from Braintree, Framingham, Peabody, and Woburn.
The discount, which amounts to a 66 percent savings over the standard fare, will be available between 12:01 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 17 through 11:59 p.m. Monday, Feb. 28. Cars that remain longer will be assessed the standard fare for any additional days.
Using Logan Express can yield significant cost savings. For instance, a family of four, with two children under 12, or a pair of adults would pay $66 for a week's worth of parking and transportation to and from the airport. The cheapest parking option at the airport runs $108 a week.
If you haven't used Logan Express, this is the way it works. Drive to the nearest of the four centers. You will have to pay for parking, along with a bus ticket. The bus service will cost $12 one way or $22 round-trip for passengers 12 and over. Children under 12 with an adult ride for free. The buses run pretty often and will drop you right at your terminal. Estimated travel time is 30-45 minutes.
Posted by globebusiness at 3:45 PM | Comments (0)
Monster fully combines its website with HotJobs
Monster Worldwide Inc. said today that after buying rival HotJobs last year, it has finished combining the website with Monster.com.
Monster bought HotJobs.com Ltd. for $225 million in cash. The Monster.com website has much of its operations in Maynard.
Now, people who type in the Web address HotJobs.com will be redirected to Monster's website. The combined website will reach more than 46 million unique visitors, according to Monster.
The deal also means the website will feature more job listings from local newspapers, a network that now includes more than 1,000 newspapers in all 50 states.
Monster said last week that Yahoo Inc. will display Monster's job listings on its websites in Latin America, a deal that's likely to attract more visitors in the region. Last year, Monster signed a multiyear deal to display its job listings on Yahoo's home page in the U.S. and Canada.
(Monster has business relationships with many media companies, including The New York Times Co., which owns The Boston Globe and Boston.com.)
Shares of Monster jumped 69 cents, or 4.1 percent, to $17.65 during afternoon trading.
Posted by globebusiness at 2:40 PM | Comments (0)
NStar proposes lower rates for many businesses
NStar Inc., the Boston-based electric and gas utility, is proposing to lower its electricity prices for many of its large business customers.
The proposal requires the approval of the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities. If NStar's proposal gets the OK, many NStar business customers could see their supply prices drop by as much as 12 percent, and the new rates would go into effect in April, NStar said in a press release.
"Our heating customers are not the only ones benefiting from lower natural gas prices this year," Tom May, NStar chairman, president, and chief executive said in a statement. "Because natural gas is the main fuel used by electricity generating plants in our region, NStar's electricity customers are also seeing lower prices due to an abundant supply of natural gas."
The next scheduled change for residential and smaller commercial customers is July 1, NStar said in its release.
Posted by globebusiness at 1:54 PM | Comments (0)
Cybex exercise gear will give NHL players a workout
Cybex International Inc., a Medway-based manufacturer of premium exercise equipment, said it has been named the "Preferred Fitness Equipment of the National Hockey League."
Under the partnership, Cybex said its equipment will now be used in every NHL arena.
In a press release, the company added, "Cybex has been the fitness choice of many of the NHL teams for years.”
Posted by globebusiness at 12:52 PM | Comments (0)
Kelley Habib John buys Cambridge firm
Two local women-owned marketing firms are joining forces.
Kelley Habib John, a Boston-based "strategic brand activation firm," said today that it has acquired Seidler Bernstein for an undisclosed amount.
Headquartered in Cambridge, Seidler Bernstein is a health-care marketing communications firm that focuses on the medical device, diagnostics, and research industries.
In a statement, Seidler Bernstein president Kathleen Bernstein explained her rationale for agreeing to be acquired by Kelley Habib John, or KHJ.
“After 18 years in business, this wasn’t a decision we took lightly,” Bernstein said. “But after realizing what powerful solutions we could provide by combining KHJ’s depth of expertise in the health-care provider and payor sides with our depth of expertise in medical device and diagnostics, it was an easy one to make. The new KHJ will have a 360-degree view of health care that will provide an integrated context our clients will benefit from."
The acquisition will nearly double Kelley Habib John's employment to about 40, a firm spokesman said.
Posted by globebusiness at 12:09 PM | Comments (0)
Local gas prices hold steady
The average price for a gallon of gas in Massachusetts remained unchanged in the latest weekly AAA survey, AAA Southern New England said.
The average price for Massachusetts gas was $3.119 a gallon, the same average price as in the previous week's survey, AAA Southern New England said.
The national average price is $3.12 a gallon, said AAA, whose surveys focus on self-serve regular unleaded gas.
A year ago at this time, the Massachusetts average price was $2.63 a gallon, AAA Southern New England said.
Posted by globebusiness at 10:43 AM | Comments (0)
John Hancock Funds launches new ad campaign
John Hancock Funds said it has launched a new ad campaign that seeks to raise awareness of the breadth of its mutual fund products both among investors and financial advisors.
The print, TV, and online campaign is titled "Who Knew?" And it was created by Boston ad agency Hill Holliday. The message is that Boston-based John Hancock is more than just an insurance company; it is also a mutual fund company. John Hancock is now a unit of Manulife Financial Corp., a Canadian financial services company.
A John Hancock press release described some print ads this way: "'Mutual Funds from John Hancock? Who knew?' and the typed comment is, 'Well, Morningstar knew." A second ad begins: 'You probably don't think of mutual funds when you think of John Hancock,' followed by, 'See why you should.'"
Posted by globebusiness at 10:26 AM | Comments (0)
Morrison will head Datawatch
Datawatch Corp., a Chelmsford-based provider of report analytics products and services, said today that Michael Morrison has joined the company as president and chief executive.
In a press release, Datawatch said that Morrison replaces Ken Bero, who has served as Datawatch's chief executive officer since January 2008. Morrison will serve on Datawatch's board of directors, the company added.
Morrison was most recently vice president of financial performance management at IBM and held a similar position at Cognos before its acquisition by IBM in 2008, Datawatch said.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:15 AM | Comments (0)
PerkinElmer buys German firm
PerkinElmer Inc., a Waltham company that provides products and services to the life sciences industry, said today that it has bought a German company that is "a natural fit" with its offerings in its molecular diagnostics and research businesses.
The company PerkinElmer bought is chemagen Biopolymer-Technologie AG, which is focused on automated nucleic acid isolation, PerkinElmer said in a press release. No financial details of the transaction are being disclosed.
In a statement, Daniel R. Marshak, chief scientific officer and president of PerkinElmer's Emerging Diagnostics unit, said: "Nucleic acids are the building blocks of DNA and RNA, modulators of genetic function and information. Our ability to provide automated nucleic acid isolation technologies through this acquisition significantly facilitates applications such as large-scale pathogen detection in blood banking, human genetics applications such as HLA typing, autoimmune analysis, and tissue rejection analysis. PerkinElmer has worked with chemagen for years to provide automated liquid-handling platforms with DNA preparation capabilities. Chemagen is a natural fit with our business."
Posted by globebusiness at 9:00 AM | Comments (0)
TripAdvisor: Listing with us is good hotel investment
Many hotels that advertise on the TripAdvisor website saw a jump in bookings at hotels that use TripAdvisor listings, according to a new study commissioned by TripAdvisor.
TripAdvisor is a travel review website headquartered in Newton. One of the company's revenue streams comes from hotels that pay TripAdvisor fees to advertise on the TripAdvisor website. One advertising option for hotels is to pay a subscription fee that allows them add their direct contact information to their TripAdvisor listing and display customized special offers.
TripAdvisor said it commissioned Forrester Research Inc., a research company based in Cambridge, to analyze the business impact to hotels of this form of advertising on the TripAdvisor website. In conducting its study, Forrester looked at hotels that belong to the Sabre Hospitality Solutions network. Sabre Hospitality Solutions provides its hotel membership with such marketing services as online advertising.
According to Forresterr, Sabre hotel clients are receiving an average of $6 dollars in incremental bookings for every dollar spent on TripAdvisor subscription fees.
TripAdvisor is a division of Expedia Inc., a Washington state company that provides travel products and services to leisure and corporate travelers.
Posted by globebusiness at 8:36 AM | Comments (0)
Sepaton has a new chief executive
Sepaton Inc. said it has promoted Mike Thompson to president and chief executive.
Marlborough-based Sepaton makes products that address the top data protection issues facing IT departments at customers such as Union Bank, Kindred Health Care, Victaulic, and Foxwoods Resorts.
Thompson (shown at right in a company photo) replaces Mike Worhach, who will remain with the company as vice chairman of the board of directors, the company said in a press release. Thompson joined Sepaton in July as executive vice president of worldwide sales and marketing. He is the former president and chief executive of Egenera Corp.
Posted by globebusiness at 7:45 AM | Comments (0)
February 11, 2011
Operating income falls at Partners HealthCare
Partners HealthCare System Inc., the state's largest hospital and physician network, today posted operating income of $22.4 million for its first quarter, down 32.7 percent from the same period a year earlier.
The decline of $11 million from Partners' operating income of $33.3 million in the year-ago period reflected a one-time charge for a planned $40 million to help reduce health insurance premiums for small businesses in Massachusetts. Partners committed to that payment last year at a time when state rate caps on insurers had inflamed the health care industry. It will make the payment in 2011.
But Partners' operating income drop for the three months ending Dec. 31 was more than offset by the increase in its nonoperating income, such as investment gains and licensing fees from patents and intellectual property developed in its hospital labs. First-quarter nonoperating income rose to $145.5 million from $83.8 million the prior year.
Overall, the parent of Massachusetts General and Brigham and Women's hospitals in Boston reported a first-quarter gain of $167.9 million, compared with $117 million in the corresponding period a year ago.
"It's a very fluid marketplace right now," said Peter K. Markell, the Partners vice president of finance. "Doing well in one quarter doesn't guarantee we'll do well in the next quarter. But we're making some progress on the expense side. If we can keep that going, we're hoping that we can see the rate of increase in expenses trend down."
In fact, Partners' operating expenses, including the costs of labor, pensions, health benefits, and wage increases, climbed 5 percent to $2 billion in the first quarter. But that was less than the 7 percent increase in expenses during the first quarter of the previous year.
The company's net patient service revenue increased 3 percent to $1.5 billion, even though patient volume remained flat, indicating that its hospitals performed more complex procedures yielding higher payments. Academic and research revenue, meanwhile, increased 11 percent to $368 million due largely to the windfall from federal stimulus funding of research at Partners' Harvard-affiliated hospitals.
Markell said the company's hospitals are working on initiatives to change the way medical care is provided and lower patient costs. Such efforts are gaining traction as the industry awaits Governor Deval Patrick's payment reform legislation.
The legislation is expected to push health care providers and insurers toward a so-called global payment system where providers would be given an annual budget to cover patients' care for a year. That would replace the current fee-for-service system where providers have incentives to order unnecessary tests and procedures.
Posted by globebusiness at 3:49 PM | Comments (0)
Logan ranks low in on-time arrivals
Logan International Airport once again ranked near the bottom in on-time arrivals last year among the country's biggest airports, the federal Bureau of Transportation Statistics said.
Only 76 percent of flights touched down when they were supposed to in 2010, putting Logan 25th out of 29 airports; in 2009, Logan came in 22d with the same rate.
Logan fared better with departures, coming in 12th with 81 percent of flights leaving on time; in 2009, 82 percent of planes took off on schedule for a 13th place ranking.
JetBlue Airways, Logan's biggest carrier, is largely to blame for Logan's poor performance. Just 76 percent of its flights arrived on time, putting the airline second to last among 18 carriers, according to the US Department of Transportation.
JetBlue attributed its delays to disruptive weather, a new computer system, and construction at John F. Kennedy International Airport, where the carrier is based.
In Boston, checkpoint construction led to gate closures that also affected the carrier's performance, said spokeswoman Alison Croyle.
"In both instances, we preferred the short-term, expedited construction processes aimed at improving and enhancing the airport experience at both JFK and BOS over longer term alternatives," Croyle said.
Seattle-Tacoma International Airport topped all other airports in both categories last year, with 85 percent of arriving planes and 88 percent of departing planes hitting the mark. The No. 1 airline was Hawaiian Airlines, which had a 93 percent on-time rate, followed by Alaska Airlines with 88 percent, and United Airlines with 85 percent.
Posted by globebusiness at 3:01 PM | Comments (0)
Hologic gets FDA OK for 3-D mammography system
Hologic Inc., a Bedford company that makes medical imaging systems, said it has gotten Food and Drug Administration approval for its 3-D mammography system.
In a press release, Hologic said that conventional 2-D mammography systems have limitations "caused by tissue overlapping tissue in the breast that may hide lesions or cause benign areas to appear suspicious." The company said its 3-D system showed "measurable improvement in clinical performance over conventional mammography."
"We are extremely proud to be the first company to receive FDA approval of a 3-D digital mammography system and to offer women this ground-breaking superior imaging technology," Rob Cascella, company president and chief executive, said in a statement.
In afternoon trading, Hologic shares were up 21 cents, or about 1 percent, to $19.94.
Posted by globebusiness at 2:47 PM | Comments (0)
Mass. AG: Office recouped $4.7m for consumers
Mediators working at Attorney General Martha Coakley's office have helped recover more than $4.7 million for consumers who contacted one of three public hotlines.
Coakley said the money was recovered during 2010 after her office responded to 13,500 complaints related to health care and elderly and consumer services.
Coakley said all calls to the hotlines are reviewed and assigned to a mediator if deemed appropriate.
Thousands of other consumers contacted the office not necessarily seeking mediation, but to make investigators aware of their experience with a particular business or merchant.
Coakley said the office monitors the complaints to look for patterns of unfair and deceptive practices.
Based on this information, she said investigators may decide to take legal action on behalf of Massachusetts consumers who are victims.
Posted by globebusiness at 12:48 PM | Comments (0)
Fuel cell makes Stop & Shop store greener
The Stop & Shop Supermarket Co. said it has just held a dedication ceremony for a fuel cell at a new Connecticut store that is expected to generate more than 90 percent of the store's electricity.
The fuel cell is a first for the Quincy-based chain, which operates nearly 400 stores in the Northeast, Stop & Shop said. The fuel cell was installed in a 55,000-square-foot Stop & Shop that opened last spring in Torrington, Conn. (The fuel cell is shown at right in a photo provided by Stop & Shop.)
The fuel cell is a Power PureCell System Model 400 from UTC Power, a unit of United Technologies Corp. The fuel cell, coupled with the use of the thermal energy produced by the fuel cell, means that the total electric and natural gas utility bills for the store in Torrington are roughly 50 percent lower than the bills for a typical Stop & Shop store, a company spokeswoman said.
Stop & Shop added that it received a grant from the Connecticut Clean Energy Fund to help with the costs of its fuel cell efforts.
"The fuel cell technology is the latest step we've taken to ensure we're doing everything we can to lower our impact to the environment in each community we serve," Jihad Rizkallah, vice president of store planning for Stop & Shop, said in a statement.
Posted by globebusiness at 12:25 PM | Comments (0)
Upscale steak house coming to Boston's Liberty Wharf
A photo from Del Frisco's website shows the interior of one of the chain's other restaurants.
Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steak House, a Texas-based restaurant chain, said it will open a Boston restaurant at Liberty Wharf on April 23.
Liberty Wharf is a $60 million three-building complex being developed by Cresset Development LLC on the South Boston Waterfront; Liberty Wharf will include four restaurants, a plaza with outdoor seating on the water, and a public marina, according to a Globe story from September. In a previous incarnation, this piece of real estate was once home to the famous Jimmy's Harborside restaurant.
Del Frisco’s said its planned 13,000-square-foot restaurant will have about 350 seats. Aside from its signature prime beef, the restaurant plans to feature a wine list that offers more than 1,200 selections.
"Del Frisco’s will house nine separate wine cellars, including its signature floor-to-ceiling wine wall located in the grand foyer and an intimate private dining wine cellar," the chain said in its press release.
“Bostonians have been visiting us for years at locations like NYC, Charlotte, and Dallas so we’re proud to finally be opening in their hometown," Del Frisco’s chief executive Mark Mednansky said in a statement. "With the iconic Jimmy’s space, we believe we’ve found the perfect location to introduce Del Frisco’s to this great city.”
The chain operates nearly 30 restaurants nationwide.
Del Frisco's won't be the only restaurant at Liberty Wharf. The Globe story in September noted that there will also be a Legal Sea Foods and a Jerry Remy sports bar.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:29 AM | Comments (0)
Dunkin’ salutes Ray Allen and 3-point sinkers
Ray Allen sets up for a shot in this AP file photo.
Sinker-purveyor Dunkin' Donuts said it will honor Ray Allen’s basketball milestone by donating 20 cents from iced coffee cups sold in the Greater Boston area today to Allen's Ray of Hope Foundation.
Last night, during a losing game against the Los Angeles Lakers, Allen of the Boston Celtics set a basketball career record for scoring 3-point baskets.
In honor of Allen's achievement, Dunkin' Donuts, a Canton-based coffee-and-baked goods chain, said that today's iced-coffee donation program has a goal of raising up to $25,000 to assist children in need. The 20-cent amount is in honor of Allen’s jersey number, which is 20, the chain said.
Dunkin's press release included a statement from Allen, who said, “The foundation supports a number of charities in the area such as the Boys & Girls Clubs and the Home for Little Wanderers, so I encourage people to head to Dunkin’ Donuts to support these and other great causes.”
Posted by globebusiness at 8:41 AM | Comments (0)
BMW taps Dassault Systèmes
BMW website
Dassault Systèmes, a French company with a big presence in Massachusetts, said it has been hired to provide product lifecycle management solutions to BMW, the luxury auto brand.
Dassault Systèmes is a product design software firm, and BMW plans to use Dassault Systèmes' V6 product lifecycle management, or PLM, solution to develop the future electrical, electronics, and embedded software architecture of BMW cars. Much of Dassault Systèmes' PLM work is done in Lowell, which markets some of its software packages under the Enovia brand name.
A current BMW marketing slogan: "Designed in America. Built in America."
According to an Enovia spokesman, BMW is in the process of evolving its vehicles into "rolling computers." Already the BMW 7 series has more than 1 gigabyte of information programmed into invididual vehicles. This information not only enhances the driver's experience with music, Internet access and phone functionality but also fine-tune the vehicle's performance. In a few years, the amount of information embedded in vehicle software is expected to escalate dramatically, and Dassault Systèmes and its Enovia brand are poised to play a role, the Enovia spokesman said.
In September, Dassault Systèmes announced plans to establish a campus in Waltham and consolidate its operations in Lowell and Concord there. At the time of the announcement, the company said it had 800 employees in Massachusetts. Plans call for the Waltham site to be the center of the company's operations in North and South America. Dassault Systèmes then employed 9,000 employees worldwide.
Posted by globebusiness at 8:14 AM | Comments (0)
February 10, 2011
Coakley opposes Progressive request to up rate
Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley has asked the state to reject Progressive Direct Insurance Co.'s request for a 23.5 percent increase on commercial auto insurance.
In a letter to the state Division of Insurance, Coakley's office said the Ohio insurer's rates were "excessive and unfair" to Massachusetts businesses and not supported by the data.
A Progressive spokeswoman has no initial comment today.
Commercial auto insurance is required for all businesses that operate vehicles in Massachusetts, including taxis, trucks, and service vans.
Coakley said the company initially requested a higher 26.6 percent increase, but reduced the requested amount after the attorney general's office asked for supporting data.
“High commercial auto rates can cause significant harm to small businesses,” Coakley said in a press release. “We believe Progressive’s proposed increase is unjustified and an unfair rate hike on small businesses across Massachusetts.”
Posted by globebusiness at 4:00 PM | Comments (0)
EMD Serono marks opening of Billerica R&D facility
In a photo provided by the company, Governor Deval Patrick (left) is given a tour of a new EMD Serono R&D facility by company senior vice president Steve Arkinstall (center) as two researchers look on.
EMD Serono, the Massachusetts biopharmaceutical division Merck KGaA, held an official opening ceremony today for a new $65 million research-and-development facility in Billerica that will initially create about 100 new jobs.
Merck, a chemical and pharmaceutical giant headquartered in Germany, will now have four research hubs deployed around the globe, and the Billerica site will be the company's only R&D hub in the United States, the company said.
According to EMD Serono, the Billerica facility will be focused on developing oncology drugs as well as treatments for neurodegenerative diseases and infertility.
Governor Deval Patrick joined Fereydoun Firouz, president and chief executive of EMD Serono, among other company officials at the ceremony. The company made available an excerpt of Firouz's remarks.
"Today is a day to embrace the accomplishments that come from our work force," said Firouz, who is shown at right in a company photo. "We challenge ourselves every day and through that passion and perseverance, we have the ability to transform science and medicine."
The new 140,000-square-foot facility was built on a site that EMD Serono owns, and there is another research building adjacent to it. The older building has 60,000 square feet of space. With the opening of the new facility, EMD Serono said it will have a total of 200,000 square feet of research space in Billerica. When nearly 100 new employees are hired, EMD Serono's Billerica research facility will have a head count of about 350.
Last year, Merck acquired Millipore Corp., a Billerica company that provides equipment and services to the life sciences industry. Merck's EMD Serono division has 1,169 Massachusetts employees, and EMD Millipore has 1,559 Massachusetts employees, EMD Serono said.
Posted by globebusiness at 3:00 PM | Comments (0)
Snow helps and hampers maple syrup producers
RANDOLPH, Vt. -- The mountains of snow that have buried the Northeast this winter will have a sweet -- and just slightly bitter -- taste for the region's maple syrup producers.
Sweet because an abundance of snow actually helps with the production of the sap that is boiled down to produce syrup. But bitter because, well, too much snow is just as much a chore for maple syrup producers to deal with as it is for the rest of us.
And most of us don't make our livings -- or even hobbies -- out of clambering over snow drifts in the woods tapping trees and repairing plastic tubing to gather sap from far-flung maple trees.
Still, on the whole "snow is considered a good thing," says Steve Childs, New York state maple specialist with Cornell University.
It moderates the temperature in the woods, keeping it cool if the air warms up, which is good for maple. The snow layers also insulate the ground, keeping it from freezing too deep so trees can draw up moisture during sap flow, which can start in February, or earlier if there's a thaw.
"So we like to see some snow," he said. "Of course, if it gets deeper than what maple tubing lines are then it gets to be quite a problem, but I don't think we're there in most places. That's usually like 3 feet to 5 feet."
Of course, winter isn't over quite yet.
With another big storm, the Silloway farm in Randolph Center, Vt., could be approaching that, with more than 2 feet of snow already in the woods at the beginning of February.
"The deep snow will keep the ground thawed out so sap will start when the air temperature is ready," said David Silloway, 65, a syrup producer and dairy farmer. "The deep snow will keep the sap cool, air cool, so that it will make lighter syrup."
Lighter syrup is typically produced early in the season when it's colder. As it warms up the syrup tends to get darker with a more robust flavor as microorganisms feed on the sugar coming out of the tree.
"It's kind of like cheese. The flavor is dictated by the microorganisms," said Timothy Perkins, director of the University of Vermont Proctor Maple Research Center.
Since Silloway has a bad knee, his nephew hikes around their nearly 20 acres in early winter when there's only about a foot of snow on the ground to check the plastic tubing that runs tree to tree to collect sap. After two storms dumped more than 2 feet of snow in early February, they'll have to use snowshoes and snowmobiles to get out to tap the nearly 2,000 trees, unless there's a big thaw.
Thanks to all that snow, the whole process could take three to four days, rather than one to two when there's not much left on the ground.
"It just gets harder to work in the woods," said Winton Pitcoff, coordinator for the Massachusetts Maple Producers Association. "The guys that are running tubing deep into the woods are used to having to use snowshoes and stuff like that, but with 4 feet of snow on the ground it just gets harder and harder."
His advice: wait. "The snow will compact eventually," he said.
Last year, spring came on fast in New England, warming up too much and cutting the season short for some, particularly those who collect sap in buckets hanging from trees. That's prompted more producers to install vacuum lines, which actually pull the sap from the tree.
"Particularly after last year the evidence was really there that it makes a huge difference," said Pitcoff. "You get more sap, significantly more sap."
But making predictions about the season is a crap shoot. It all comes down to the weather during those several weeks of sugaring season. That's the period when temperatures rise above freezing enough for trees to run sap and before it's warm enough for them to push out leaves.
Warm days followed by below freezing nights is prime sugaring weather, so that frozen trees full of sap thaw out and push out sap through holes and then freeze up at night and suck in moisture from the ground for more sap production.
The previous spring and summer also play a role.
Vermont -- the country's maple syrup giant, which produced 890,000 gallons in 2010 -- had a good growing season last year. With ample moisture and plenty of sunshine the trees were able to produce enough sugar through photosynthesis.
"They went into the winter being very healthy," said Perkins said.
The snow will help, Childs said. And it's likely to provide ample supply for sugar-on-snow parties. But syrup producers won't know what kind of season they're having until it's all over.
"It could turn 70 degrees and all the snow could leave in 3 days and we'd be right back where we started from," Childs said.
Posted by globebusiness at 2:44 PM | Comments (0)
Key Talbots exec leaving; search is under way
HINGHAM -- Women's clothing chain Talbots Inc. said today that a key executive, chief stores officer John Fiske, is leaving the company, which is struggling to turn itself around.
Fiske, 46, was named the chief stores officer of the retailer in March 2009 after serving as a human resources executive. He was part of a management team that was put in place to improve business results.
But the retailer has had trouble winning back customers it lost during the recession. It cut its guidance last month after a weak holiday shopping season, blaming poor customer response to its clothing and aggressive markdowns.
Its shares have dropped 23 percent since then and are trading near their lowest point since August 2009. The stock slid 3 cents Thursday to $5.84.
Analysts expect Talbots to post revenue of $1.2 billion for the year that ended in January 2011. The company's revenue has shrunk for three years. It hasn't posted an annual profit since its 2006 fiscal year, which ended in January 2007.
Talbots said Fiske was leaving to "pursue other opportunities." Talbots said it was searching for a replacement.
While Fiske was chief stores officer, Talbots revamped its clothing mix to appeal more to its target group of women age 35 and older, and it launched a splashy ad campaign featuring model Linda Evangelista. It also cut costs and engineered a complicated deal that involved buying out its largest shareholder, Japanese retail company Aeon (U.S.A.) Inc., to help it cut debt. And it made plans to close 75 to 100 stores by the end of 2013.
The company hasn't paid a dividend since December 2008, according to its website.
Talbots operated 580 stores at the end of January.
(The photo with this post was taken from the Talbots website.)
Posted by globebusiness at 2:21 PM | Comments (0)
Momenta turns 4Q profit helped by generic sales
Momenta Pharmaceuticals Inc. said today that it turned a fourth-quarter profit and achieved profitability for the first time in 2010 as a generic version of the anti-clotting drug Lovenox pushed revenue growth.
The Cambridge company earned $36.3 million, or 77 cents per share, in the three months that ended Dec. 31. That compares to a loss of $14.7 million, or 34 cents per share, in the final quarter of 2009.
Revenue climbed to $58.3 million from $5.6 million.
Analysts polled by FactSet expected, on average, earnings of 81 cents per share on $58.4 million in revenue.
For the full year, Momenta earned $37.3 million, or 81 cents per share, on $116.8 million in revenue.
The company said revenue climbed due to commercial sales of enoxaparin sodium injection. In July, the Food and Drug Administration approved generic versions of Lovenox, or enoxaparin, developed by Momenta and by Novartis AG.
Lovenox is used to prevent dangerous blood clots, including clots in the veins of the thigh or leg, or in patients who are having a heart attack or chest pain. The original version of the drug is made by French pharmaceutical company Sanofi-Aventis SA and was approved in the United States in 1993.
Momenta may face additional competition soon. Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., the world's largest generic drugmaker, said last month the FDA is closer to approving its version of Lovenox.
In December, Momenta filed a lawsuit against Teva, citing patent infringement. Momenta claimed that Teva violated two patents held by Momenta that are related to its generic version. Teva disputes the claim.
Shares of Momenta fell 11 cents to $13.43 in morning trading.
Posted by globebusiness at 12:18 PM | Comments (0)
IPG expects 4Q results above views; shares soar
OXFORD -- IPG Photonics Corp., which makes lasers for a variety of applications including telecommunications and medical devices, said today that it expects to report fourth-quarter profit above its previous forecast.
Shares surged $10.28, or 30 percent, to $45.03 in midday trading, reaching a 52-week high of $47.50 earlier in the day.
The company said it expects profit between 53 cents and 56 cents per share on about $100 million in sales. Previously, the company said it expected profit between 30 cents and 35 cents per share on revenue between $80 million and $86 million.
Analysts polled by FactSet had been forecasting profit of 36 cents per share on $85 million.
"Our exceptional sales performance this quarter was driven by broad-based demand strength," said CEO Dr. Valentin Gapontsev, in a statement.
The company expects to provide revenue and earnings per share guidance for the first quarter of 2011 when it announces its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year 2010 on Feb. 25.
Posted by globebusiness at 12:14 PM | Comments (0)
Heiser appointed president of EMC security division
EMC Corp., the Hopkinton-based data storage giant said that Tom Heiser, a 26 year company veteran, has been promoted to the post of president of RSA, EMC's security division.
Most recently, Heiser was RSA's chief operating officer.
In a press release, EMC said: "Art Coviello will continue to drive RSA's strategic initiatives as executive chairman of RSA and will lead EMC's trusted cloud initiatives as executive vice president of EMC. Heiser will continue to report to Coviello."
RSA, which provides security, compliance, and risk management solutions, had revenues of more than $700 million in 2010. EMC reported that total 2010 revenue was $17 billion.
Posted by globebusiness at 11:53 AM | Comments (0)
Watts announces intention to buy Danfoss Socla
Watts Water Technologies Inc., a North Andover company focused on water-control and water quality applications, announced its intention to acquire Danfoss Socla of France and the related water controls business of Danfoss A/S.
The proposed purchase price is expected to be in the range of 115 million to 120 million Euros. At today's exchange rates, 120 million Euros is about $163 million US.
In a press release, Watts said it would not make any further public announcements about the possible transaction unless and until a definitive agreement is reached.
Posted by globebusiness at 10:10 AM | Comments (0)
Study: Companies up commitment to sustainability
More than two-thirds of businesses are strengthening their commitment to sustainability, according to a new study by MIT Sloan Management Review and the Boston Consulting Group.
This is the second annual study that the two have put together, and the new study is based on data gathered from more than 3,100 corporate leaders representing every major industry and region of the world. The new study is titled "Sustainability: The ‘Embracers’ Seize Advantage."
The new study "found that a two-speed landscape is emerging, with a gap between sustainability 'embracers' --- those who place sustainability high on their agenda --- and nonembracers or 'cautious adopters,' who have yet to focus on more than energy cost savings, material efficiency, and risk mitigation," MIT Sloan Management Review and the Boston Consulting Group said in a joint press release.
A commitment to sustainability can pay dividends: Nearly 50 percent of survey respondents said "improved brand reputation" is perceived as the biggest benefit of aggressively addressing sustainability issues.
The press release included a statement from Knut Haanaes, a Boston Consulting Group partner and managing director and co-author of the report.
“Most companies—whether currently embracers or not—are looking toward a world where sustainability is becoming a mainstream, if not required, part of the business strategy,” Haanaes said. “Those not already putting sustainability at the heart of their business will need to do so in the near term.”
The MIT Sloan Management Review is a website and print magazine published at the MIT Sloan School of Management. The Boston Consulting Group is a global management consulting firm.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:24 AM | Comments (0)
Willow Tree Poultry Farm taps Strategis
A Willow Tree chicken pie in company photo
Strategis said that it has been named as the social media agency of record for Willow Tree Poultry Farm, the Attleboro-based purveyor of frozen chicken pies, fresh chicken salad, party platters, fresh turkeys, and old fashioned bread stuffing.
"Working with Willow Tree president Walter Cekala, Strategis will create and develop a strategy for their Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn pages, blogger outreach, and other social initiatives for Willow Tree as well as hosting monthly contests and promotions," Stoughton-based Strategis said in a press release.
Other Strategis clients include Yankee Spirits, Senior Living Residences, Lombardo’s. and Blue Hills Brewery.
(The image that appears with this post was taken from Willow Tree's website.)
Posted by globebusiness at 8:53 AM | Comments (0)
February 9, 2011
Charles River Labs reports 4Q loss on charges
WILMINGTON -- Medical research equipment and services company Charles River Laboratories International Inc. said late Tuesday it took a loss in the fourth quarter on hefty impairment charges.
For the three months ended Dec. 25, Charles River Labs said it lost $343.6 million, or $6.04 per share, compared with profit of $17.6 million, or 27 cents per share, during the same period a year prior. Revenue fell 3 percent to $281.7 million from $290 million.
Excluding charges, the company earned 60 cents per share from continuing operations. In November, the company announced plans to cut jobs from its preclinical and research models and services businesses, along with corporate functions.
Analysts polled by FactSet expected profit of 49 cents per share on $271.1 million in revenue.
Revenue from the preclinical service business, which handles outsourced research for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, fell 6 percent to $113.3 million as demand from large pharmaceutical companies remained slow. Revenue from the research models and services business fell less than 1 percent to $168.4 million.
For the full year, the company lost $336.7 million, or $5.38 per share, compared with profit of $114.4 million, or $1.74 per share, in fiscal 2009. Adjusted profit for 2010 totaled $125.6 million, or $1.99 per share. Revenue fell to $1.13 billion from $1.17 billion.
Looking ahead, the company reaffirmed its outlook for adjusted profit between $2.20 and $2.40 per share on flat revenue in 2011. Analysts expect about $2.30 per share in profit on $1.12 billion in revenue.
Shares of Charles River jumped $1.22, or 3.3 percent, to $37.97 in morning trading today. The stock has traded between $26.82 and $41.65 over the last 52 weeks.
Posted by globebusiness at 12:20 PM | Comments (0)
Zoll Medical expands in Chelmsford
Zoll Medical Corp., a medical device company, is expanding its headquarters operations in Chelmsford, a real estate broker said today.
The broker is FHO Partners, a commercial real estate firm that represented Zoll in a recent lease transaction.
Zoll had been occupying roughly 180,000 square feet of space in Chelmsford's Quorum Office Park; under a new lease agreement, Zoll will occupy about 220,000 square feet of space as the company looks to accommodate its growth, FHO Partners said.
Boston Properties Inc. is the landlord of Quorum Park.
Posted by globebusiness at 10:55 AM | Comments (0)
Celtics Ray Allen pitches Webster Bank
Webster Bank said it has entered a marketing partnership with Boston Celtics star Ray Allen.
The bank added that it has released a video titled “The Webster Dream Team” for social media consumption. The video stars Allen, his one-time college coach Jim Calhoun, and a group of the bank’s Boston-based employees. The video is posted above this update item.
“Our new partnership with Ray Allen offers an incredibly unique way for Webster to strengthen and differentiate our brand from Boston through Connecticut,” Michelle Crecca, chief marketing officer for Webster Bank, said in a statement.
Under the agreement, Webster said it has full marketing and endorsement rights from Allen throughout the bank’s New England/New York geographical footprint through August 2012.
The partnership was negotiated with Boston-based Altus Marketing & Management, and the video was produced by the agency Kelliher Samets Volk, also of Boston, the bank said in a press release.
Posted by globebusiness at 10:16 AM | Comments (0)
Clinical Data posts narrower loss in fiscal 3Q
NEWTON -- Biotechnology company Clinical Data Inc. reported a smaller fiscal third-quarter loss today because of a drug development milestone payment and income from a business it sold in December.
Clinical Data said it lost $5.2 million, or 17 cents per share, in the three months ended Dec. 31. A year earlier, it lost $16 million, or 63 cents per share. The loss from continuing operations narrowed to $11.2 million, or 37 cents per share, from a loss of $13.9 million, or 54 cents per share.
It reported $2 million in revenue in the most recent quarter compared to none the previous year.
Analysts expected a loss of 54 cents per share and $3.3 million in revenue, according to FactSet.
Clinical Data reported a gain of $6.1 million from discontinued operations in the quarter. In December, the company sold its Familion business, which develops genetic tests for inherited heart disease, and the PGxPredict tests, which predict a patient's response to particular drugs. Transgenomic Inc. paid $6 million upfront for Familion. The total sale price was $15.6 million, plus a percentage of the business Transgenomic records in the 18 months after closing.
Santen Pharmaceutical Co. paid Clinical Data $2 million after Santen filed an application for a potential glaucoma and ocular hypertension drug that Clinical Data developed. Santen expects to start clinical trials in the next few months.
Clinical Data's depression drug Viibryd was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in January. The company plans to start a second late-stage clinical trial of its imaging drug Stedivaze in the second quarter. Stedivaze is designed to expand the blood vessels of the heart to make it easier to get an image of those blood vessels. Stedivaze is intended for use in patients with coronary artery disease who can't undergo exercise stress testing.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:42 AM | Comments (0)
Rattle will help market the city of Salem
Local ad agency Rattle said it has been hired to lead the marketing efforts for the city of Salem.
Rattle said it won the account after an ad agency review. Billings were not disclosed.
Headquartered in Beverly, Rattle has a roster of clients that include the Boston Harbor Cruises, Connecticut Science Center, Kittery Trading Post, Samuels & Associates, and York Hospital.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:29 AM | Comments (0)
InfraReDx has a new chief executive
InfraReDx Inc., a Burlington-based medical device company, said that Donald Southard has joined the company as president and chief executive.
In a press release, InfraReDx added that James E. Muller, MD, company cofounder and previous chief executive, will "continue to play an integral role at InfraReDx in his position as chief medical officer and in his new role as chairman of the company’s board of directors."
Southard (shown at right in a company photo) has also been elected to the company’s board of directors. Most recently, he was chief executive of Zonare Medical Systems.
Privately held InfraReDx seeks to develop and commercialize intelligent imaging technologies designed to improve the diagnosis and treatment of coronary artery disease.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:07 AM | Comments (0)
MIT economist hopes comics will explain health law
Pow! Biff! Krakk!
An MIT economist and adviser to President Barack Obama is turning to comic books to help make the pitch for the administration's embattled health care law.
Jonathan Gruber said he was hesitant at first when a book publisher approached him with the idea of translating the complex new law into a genre more typically populated by superheroes in tights.
But Gruber said his family, particularly his comics-obsessed 16-year-old son, convinced him that the pulpy panache of the graphic novel format would be an ideal way to help explain the law to ordinary readers.
Don't expect caped crusaders, evil geniuses and secret plans of world domination, although Gruber concedes he's on a rescue mission of sorts: defending the law from what he calls the "ugly, evil rhetoric" of critics.
"When people understand the bill, they like it," he said. "That's a great position for an academic to be in. I don't have to lie or twist anything to get my point across; I just have to explain what this (law) is about."
Gruber said that while many people are skeptical about the new law, they tend to come around once the details are explained to them.
Gruber said he was nervous at first that his fellow academics might shun his foray into pop culture, but said those worries were quickly overridden by his family once he told them of the idea.
"At first I said 'No, I don't have the time,"' Gruber said. "Then my family said, 'You're crazy,' and the more I thought about it, the better the idea sounded."
Gruber is no novice to the health care debate.
He worked with former Republican Gov. Mitt Romney on Massachusetts' landmark 2006 health care law which provided a blueprint for the national law. He has also worked as an adviser to Obama and serves on the Commonwealth Health Insurance Connector Authority Board, which oversees the state law.
The book, due to hit the shelves in September, is being published Hill & Wang, a subsidiary of Farrar, Straus and Giroux.
It also carries a far wonkier title than most comics, "Health Care Reform: What It Is, Why It's Necessary, How it Works."
The idea of tackling a weighty topic in the world of comics may not be as unusual as it sounds.
The graphic novel has been used to illustrate everything from life on the West Bank and Gaza Strip in the early 1990s to the 9/11 Commission report. In 1992, illustrator Art Spiegelman won a Pulitzer Prize for his Holocaust-inspired comic "Maus."
Craig Gardner, a comic book aficionado and former manager of The Million Year Picnic, a comic book store in Cambridge, Mass. said comic books and graphic novels have come a long way since Archie.
He said there's no reason why a complex topic like health care can't be tackled by the genre.
"Something like the health care law, I don't understand it. It's this long thing with a lot of whistles and bells and after a while you start to fade out," he said. "Putting it in a visual medium is one way of making it more immediate."
Gruber is letting an illustrator chosen by the publisher handle the book's images. His task was to deliver a 25-page manuscript explaining the law -- what Gruber called "a defensible text that is fact-based."
That manuscript was handed off to a second writer who must translate it into comic book lingo.
Even those who oppose the new law say they're curious about Gruber's comic.
Michael Tanner, a senior fellow at the libertarian Cato Institute called the new law a disaster for patients, doctors and health care providers.
"Given what we know about the health care bill in the last year, he might want to title it The Dark Knight," Tanner said. "We've had about 1,000 Democratic strategies for how to sell this and the comic book is one more."
Asked if he'd read it, however, Tanner said "Sure."
Posted by globebusiness at 8:55 AM | Comments (0)
Compostable kitchen items from Staples?
Think Staples Inc. and what comes to mind are office supplies. But compostable kitchen items including cups, plates, and cutlery?
Customers won't find such items in Staples stores, but the Framingham-based company said today in a press release that Staples Advantage, its business-to-business division, will now offer Sustainable Earth by Staples janitorial paper products and compostable kitchen items to its corporate customers.
"Organizations are looking for simple ways to make their offices more sustainable," Lisa Hamblet, vice president for the facility solutions and services business of Staples Advantage, said in a statement. "With our Sustainable Earth by Staples line, companies now have the ability to conveniently and cost-effectively purchase environmentally-preferable kitchen and paper products that perform as well as traditional alternatives, yet have less of an impact on the environment. We believe small and easy changes can add up to a better environmental impact for businesses and the planet."
Posted by globebusiness at 8:41 AM | Comments (0)
Sanofi: Making good progress on Genzyme deal
The top executive of France’s Sanofi-Aventis SA this morning said his drug company has “made very good progress” in its talks to acquire Genzyme Corp. of Cambridge.
But no deal was announced as the Paris-based Sanofi posted 2010 sales that edged down from the prior year, highlighting its need to find new products.
In a video posted on its website, chief executive Christopher A. Viehbacher did not discuss the reasons for the delay in what is expected to be a nearly $20 billion acquisition. But he said the transaction continues to make sense for Sanofi both financially and strategically.
“There are some learnings that we gain out of that business,” said Viehbacher, suggesting that Genzyme’s expertise in making drugs to treat rare diseases could boost Sanofi’s move into personalized medicine. “Some people might say if you follow personalized medicine to an extreme, every disease is a rare disease.”
Viehbacher also said, “We believe there are some significant synergies to be had as we combine the two businesses.”
Executives typically use the word synergies to refer to cost savings they can gain by eliminating overlapping jobs after a merger.
In a presentation to financial analysts in Europe this morning, Viehbacher spoke only briefly about Genzyme. “We’ve still got our heads down and we’re working away on that,” he said.
Viehbacher said a Genzyme buyout would accelerate Sanofi’s move into biotechnology and “reinforce our position in Massachusetts, in a real hotbed of research opportunity”
But he also reiterated that Sanofi is intent on not overpaying for Genzyme. “Look,” he said, “I’m spending shareholder money, and we’re not going to do that frivolously and we’re not going to do that rapidly.”
“We’ve made some very good progress on Genzyme,” he said in the company video, but gave no indication on when the deal might be complete. “We’ve been able to engage management in discussions to the extent that we’ve signed a confidentiality agreement and we’re doing due diligence as we speak. I think the transaction still continues to be strategically very attractive to this company. It accelerates our move into biotechnology.”
Viehbacher said Sanofi’s financial report was solid, noting that global sales declined less than 1 percent despite the loss of more than $2.5 billion to low-cost generic competition last year as some best-selling drugs came off patent.
“As expected, the company was affected by generic competition,” he said. “This is the emergence of the so-called patent cliff that we have been predicting for some time.”
Sanofi has been pursuing Genzyme since May. Its initial offer of an $18.5 billion sale price , or $69 a share, was rebuffed by Genzyme as too low. But over the last few weeks, the likelihood of a deal has increased. The talks intensified over the last 10 days when Sanofi signaled it would raise its initial $69-a-share offer, a key demand made by Genzyme, which then agreed to open its books to Sanofi.
Posted by globebusiness at 8:12 AM | Comments (0)
Dollar Tree store opens in Boston
Dollar Tree Inc. said it has opened a new store in Boston.
The roughly 9,000-square-foot discount variety store is located at 950 American Legion Hwy., said company, which sells products for $1 or less.
Headquartered in Virginia, Dollar Tree operates more than 4,000 stores in the United States.
Posted by globebusiness at 6:07 AM | Comments (0)
February 8, 2011
SEC charges hedge fund with insider trading
Federal securities regulators today charged a New York-based hedge fund and four hedge fund employees, including one from Boston, in a $30 million insider-trading scheme.
The charges were part of the Securities and Exchange Commission's ongoing probe of insider trading by hedge funds that hire consultants or so-called expert networks, to provide inside information on companies, like earnings or upcoming products.
According to the regulators, the hedge fund portfolio managers and analysts named in their complaint illegally made stock trades based on nonpublic tips they received on such technology companies as Apple Inc., Dell Inc., and Marvell Technology Group Ltd.
One of the hedge fund managers named in the case is Noah Freeman, 34, a former portfolio manager at the Boston office of SAC Capital Advisors, a large hedge fund firm based in Stamford, Conn.
The SEC alleged that Freeman obtained inside information regarding two high-tech stocks and passed that information on to a New York colleague to make trades that produced millions in profits.
Freeman's lawyer was not immediately available for comment.
Jonathan Gasthalter, a spokesman for SAC, said, “We are outraged by the alleged actions of two former employees, which required active circumvention of our compliance policies and are egregious violations of our ethical standards."
Regulators alleged that Freeman and his colleague, Donald Longueuil, 34, started tapping insider information for trades in 2006, at their prior firms. Both joined SAC in mid-2008 and were dismissed last year for poor performance, unrelated to the alleged insider trading, the company said. Freeman was dismissed in January 2010.
Longueuil's lawyer could not immediately be located. Gasthalter said SAC is continuing to cooperate with the government's investigation.
Posted by globebusiness at 2:06 PM | Comments (0)
JetBlue plans to add Logan flights
JetBlue plans to launch nonstop service to Portland, Ore., and Santiago, Dominican Republic.
With these two additions, the carrier will be serving 42 nonstop destinations from Logan International Airport.
Daily seasonal flights to Portland International Airport will begin May 26; service to Santiago Cibao International Airport will run Tuesdays, Fridays, and Sundays, subject to receipt of government approval, and begin on Friday June 17. Fares are on sale now, with one-way prices to Portland as low $169 for travel booked by Friday, Feb. 11. Travel must take place June 1 - June 29.
JetBlue will also begin weekly winter service to Providenciales, in the Turks & Caicos Islands, on Feb. 19 and four daily flights from Logan to Newark, on May 4. Summer service to Oakland, Calif., will also resume in May.
Posted by globebusiness at 2:01 PM | Comments (0)
Can Celtics history be celebrated in sneaker design?
This photo was taken from a Celtics-NBA website.
A new contest asks Boston Celtics fans to become virtual cobblers and design a customized pair of Adidas sneakers that celebrates the team's championship heritage, the Celtics said today.
Starting this month and running through May, Celtics fans can design a new Adidas sneaker at the mi adidas custom adidas online store, the Celtics said. (The shoe photo at right was taken from the Celtics website.)
Monthly winners will receive their design of the sneakers, and "a grand prize winner chosen in May will receive two tickets to a Celtics game along with a meet and greet with center Kendrick Perkins," the team said.
In crafting their customized entries at the special website, participants have the option of choosing "from a wide array of colors, designs, material, and logos for thousands of possible custom sneaker combinations," the Celtics said.
To help inspire footwear creativity, the team suggests that would-be designer visit this website about team history.
Posted by globebusiness at 1:12 PM | Comments (0)
Yankee Group: E-reader sales will soar
Global sales of e-readers such as the Kindle are projected to reach $8.2 billion by 2014, according to a new report from Yankee Group, a Boston-based market research firm.
That's up from 2010 sales of nearly $1.9 billion, or from about 11 million units last year to a projected 72 million in unit sales in 2014, Yankee Group said.
And by 2014, the average retail price for an e-reader device should be $114, down from a 2010 average of $182, Yankee Group said.
“Falling prices, growing content libraries and color e-paper displays will persuade consumers around the world to snap up e-readers like Amazon’s Kindle,” Dmitriy Molchanov, the Yankee Group analyst who authored the report, said in a statement. “Consumers in China and India will be responsible for a growing proportion of worldwide sales as Asia-Pacific’s middle class continues to grow.”
Posted by globebusiness at 12:05 PM | Comments (0)
More corporations being formed in Mass.
Secretary of State William Galvin says a spike in corporation filings could be a sign that the Massachusetts economy is bouncing back.
Figures released by Galvin's office today showed there were 14,747 new corporation filings during the last six months. That was a better than 4 percent increase over the same six-month period in 2009-2010.
In a statement, Galvin called the increased business activity "an encouraging sign of economic recovery."
Meanwhile, the state Office of Administration and Finance has announced that Standard & Poor's has boosted its credit outlook on Massachusetts bonds to positive from stable. The state's general obligation bond rating remains at AA, where it has been since 2007, but officials say the improved credit outlook could signal a bond rating increase sometime in the future.
Posted by globebusiness at 11:40 AM | Comments (0)
Airlines offer free access to Facebook
Looking to promote their online WiFi services, seven major airlines are giving away free access to Facebook all month.
The freebie, which is being done in conjunction with the carriers' access provider, Aircell LLC's Gogo Inflight Internet, will be available on domestic routes for Virgin America, United Airlines, American Airlines, Delta, AirTran, US Airways, and Alaska Airlines.
The offers is only for use of Facebook, which Gogo says is its most visited inflight website. Travelers who want full Internet use will need to pay standard fees -- $4.95 for a short flight to $12.95 for a long one.
Inflight WiFi has been available for a few years now, but travelers have been slow to embrace it. Amy Cravens, an analyst at market researcher In-Stat, told USA Today that she estimates that no more than about 10 percent of passengers on Wi-Fi-equipped planes use the service, suggesting that there may be some concern about quality.
During last year's holiday season, Gogo teamed up with Google to offer travelers on AirTran, Delta, and Virgin America free access to push inflight WiFi.
Photo courtesy of American Airlines
Posted by globebusiness at 11:02 AM | Comments (0)
Logan to add flights to Albany, Iceland
Passengers flying from Boston to Iceland and New York state will soon have more airlines to choose from.
Cape Air plans to begin service from Logan International Airport to Albany, N.Y., next month, the regional carriers' 10th destination out of Logan.The new service, on 9-seat planes, starts March 8 with three daily nonstop flights. Colgan Air currently flies to Albany twice a day on 34-seat aircraft.
On May 16, Iceland Express lands at Logan, offering seasonal service to Reykjavik. The low-cost carrier will start with two nonstop trips a week, on Monday and Thursday, and add two more flights on Tuesday and Wednesday beginning June 13; service ends Oct. 29. Iceland Express joins fellow Reykjavik-based carrier, Icelandair, which flies from Boston to Reykjavik year-round, with two departures a day in the summer.
Posted by globebusiness at 10:51 AM | Comments (0)
Zipcar adds campuses to car-sharing network
Zipcar Inc., the Cambridge-based car-sharing company, said today that it recently launched service at eight additional campuses.
In general, ideal venues for car-sharing networks are densely populated urban areas served by mass transit and college campuses.
With the addition of the new campuses, Zipcar said in a press release that it now has a presence on more than 225 campuses.
Campuses where Zipcar has just launched service include University of Texas at Austin, Michigan State University, North Carolina State University, University of Richmond, Christopher Newport University, Hampshire College, Meredith College, and Seton Hall University, Zipcar said.
In a statement, Zipcar chairman and chief executive Scott Griffith said: "We know that college students quickly embrace the concept of car-sharing. This is the same generation that buys music by the song. Reserving a shared car by the hour is a natural extension."
Posted by globebusiness at 10:31 AM | Comments (0)
Women shoe shoppers give recession the boot
In searching for signs that hard times are about to turn better, some analysts scrutinize the housing market; others sift through unemployment data, but another method involves checking out the fashion status of women's footwear.
According to this school of thought, what women are wearing on their feet is an economic canary in a coal mine of sorts, a data point that can yield clues on when the economy's trajectory might be about to reach an inflection point. If this theory has the additional advantage of being true, then there is cause for rejoicing beacuse there has been a recent sales increase for tony high-heel sneakers and fashion-forward footwear.
So notes the NPD Group, a market research firm headquartered in Port Washington, N.Y., that keeps the footwear industry under close surveillance.
"After posting a decline of 3.5 percent for annual 2009, the total fashion footwear market has posted a 7.2 percent increase for all of 2010," said an NPD press release, which added that sales of women’s fashion footwear were up 8 percent after having posted a slight decline in 2009.
Women's boot sales in 2010, meanwhile, were up 21 percent, NPD said.
NPD's press release included a statement from Marshal Cohen, the firm's chief industry analyst.
“The footwear market was the last to feel the pain of the recession and is the first to feel the gain of the recovery, and women are leading the charge,” Cohen said. “Women were the first to feel ‘frugal fatigue’ and head back to spending on fashion product while spending on men’s and children’s products has followed.”
Posted by globebusiness at 9:18 AM | Comments (0)
Retail labor index rises
A monthly retail labor index is clocking in at it highest level since August 2008, but the high reading may not be cause for celebration just yet.
That's because there was relatively little job searching and hiring activity in recent weeks.
The index is compiled by Kronos Inc., a Chelmsford company specializing in workforce management solutions designed to help corporate customers control labor costs and improve workforce productivity.
The monthly index uses a scale of zero to 100. A score of 3, for example, means that for every 100 applications received, three hirings occurred. The latest index reading is 4.2, up from 3.85 the previous month, Kronos said in a press release.
In a statement, Kronos chief economist Robert Yerex said: “Applications and hiring were down significantly this month, but the combination pushed the Index up to its highest point since August 2008. Overall, 2010 was a year in which we saw retailers reduce their overall labor capacity by almost 10 percent.”
Posted by globebusiness at 8:44 AM | Comments (0)
Go west for stress
Parts of Nebraska are looking pretty good these days. Kansas and the Dakota steppes as well. Chittenden County in Vermont, which includes the city of Burlington, is also a good bet if you're looking for a place that the recession has largely left alone.
Those are some conclusions that might be drawn from a "stress map" compiled by the Associated Press. The AP looks at such factors as unemployment, foreclosure rates, and bankruptcy filings to sketch out a map of the most economically stressed counties in the United States. It also draws up a list of counties where economic stress is low.
In the AP map based on the latest data, economic stress has pretty much taken up residence out West. Just about all the most stressed-out counties in the country are in California and Nevada. And the least stressed counties? There are an awful lot of them in Kansas and Nebraska. Chittenden County, Vermont, meanwhile, clocked in at number 18 on the AP's latest 20 least economically stressed counties list. Chittenden was the only New England county to make either list. (The AP doesn't calculate scores for counties with fewer than 25,000 folks.)
Near the top of the list is Buffalo County, Nebraska, with a very impressive low-stress score. But here's the bad news. According to the weather map, the temperature is minus 2 this morning, and the forecast calls for "a bit of snow." In Buffalo County, it seems, you can get all the low economic stress and wintry mix you can handle.
Posted by globebusiness at 6:12 AM | Comments (0)
February 7, 2011
Mass. company draws fire for immigration game app
A Boston-based tech company is drawing fire from immigrant advocates for developing a game that allows users to drive a truck full of immigrants through the desert and try not to have them tossed out.
"Smuggle Truck: Operation Immigration," a proposed iPhone and iPad app by Owlchemy (OWL'-cheh-mee) Labs, lets players navigate through the U.S-Mexican border over cliffs, mountains and dead animal. As the truck hits obstacles, immigrants fall off the truck's bed. Scores are calculated by the number of immigrants helped crossing the US border.
Developer Alex Schwartz said the idea for the satirical game came out frustration friends faced while trying to immigrate to the U.S.
But Eva Millona, executive director of the Massachusetts Immigrants & Refugee Advocacy Coalition, said the game is in poor taste.
Posted by globebusiness at 2:38 PM | Comments (0)
ATM applications rise after Division of Banks survey
The Massachusetts Division of Banks said about 1,500 applications for non-bank ATM registrations have been filed in the six weeks since an agency survey found that more than 300 ATMs that were not properly registered with the state and that another 101 machines that failed to comply with other state rules.
There are now about 7,000 registered non-bank ATMs in Massachusetts with 90 applications pending, up from about 5,600 on Dec. 20 when the division released its survey, the division said. In its survey, the division found 317 unregistered. Since then, 201 of those ATMs have been registered, with 10 more applications pending, the division said today.
The number of registered independent, nonbank-owned ATMs - machines that are frequently found in convenience stores and gas stations - has shot up dramatically over the past decade. There are fewer than 5,000 bank-owned ATMs in the state, officials have said.
In a statement today, David Cotney, commissioner of the Division of Banks, said: “This survey has proven to be a great educational effort not just for consumers, but for non-bank ATM owners who learned they needed to get their machines registered. The survey and the following response improve consumer protection across the state when it comes to using ATMs not associated with banks.”
Posted by globebusiness at 12:27 PM | Comments (0)
WiFi usage rockets at Logan
The Massachusetts Port Authority said this morning that WiFi use at Logan International Airport rose 412 percent last year over 2009. The reason? It was free.
Massport reported that there were 1. 4 million sessions logged last year, compared to 349,381 in 2009. The airport installed its WiFi system about seven years ago, initially charging travelers for using it. Logan officials said that the fees were intended to recoup installation costs.
Last January, Massport partnered with service provider, Advanced Wireless Group, to offer free service, which is supported by advertising and sponsorship programs. A wise move. The air transport industry started figuring out about three years ago that travelers -- especially the much-coveted business traveler -- consider Internet access a necessity. Scores of airports around the nation now offer free WiFi and most large airlines offer at least some fee-based service.
“We knew this was something our customers wanted and we are thrilled with the response,’’ Thomas J. Kinton Jr., executive director of Massport, said in a press release. “Usage grew throughout the year and peak periods reflected the passenger volume in the terminals. It is not surprising our single busiest day was the day before Thanksgiving – which is one of the busiest days of the year in the airline industry -- when 8,235 sessions were recorded.’’
Photo by Josh Reynolds for The Boston Globe
Posted by globebusiness at 11:45 AM | Comments (0)
Oberstein will head Nixon Peabody Boston office
Law firm Nixon Peabody LLP has appointed Gary J. Oberstein as managing partner of its Boston office.
Oberstein (shown at right in a photo provided by the firm) succeeds Andrew I. Glincher, who became the firm’s chief executive and managing partner Feb. 1. Headquartered in Boston, Nixon Peabody is an international firm with offices in 17 cities around the world.
Oberstein's focus has been labor and employment law. His law degree is from Boston College Law School.
Posted by globebusiness at 11:06 AM | Comments (0)
Local gas prices rise a penny a gallon
The average price for gas in Massachusetts is $3.119 a gallon in the latest weekly survey from AAA, up a penny a gallon from the previous week's average, AAA Southern New England said today.
The national average is $3.12 a gallon, said AAA Southern New England. AAA's weekly surveys focus on self-serve, regular unleaded gas.
A year ago at this time, the Massachusetts average price was $2.65.
Posted by globebusiness at 10:34 AM | Comments (0)
Hostel building on Hemenway has new owner
Hostelling International Boston has sold the building a 12 Hemenway St. in Boston to Hemenway Realty Ventures LLC for $4.75 million, said a broker involved in the transaction.
The broker is Colliers International, a commercial real estate services company with offices in Boston. Until recently, Colliers International's Boston operations were known as Colliers Meredith & Grew. Colliers International said it represented both the seller and the buyer.
The building at 12 Hemenway is currently used as a hostel by Hostelling International Boston, which is building a much larger hostel at 25 Stuart St. in Boston. Under the terms of the sale, Hostelling International will lease back the entire 22,000-square-foot building for about 18 months and continue to operate the site as a hostel for that period. When the new hostel on 25 Stuart opens, something expected to happen in the spring of 2012, the hostel at 12 Hemenway will close.
The new owner of 12 Hemenway St. is "currently in the process of determining the future use of the building for the period subsequent" to Hostelling International Boston's occupancy, Colliers International said.
Posted by globebusiness at 10:24 AM | Comments (0)
A123 gets order from Chile
A123 Systems, a Watertown company focused on lithium ion batteries, said its energy storage technology will be used by a power grid facility in Northern Chile.
In a press release, A123 Systems said it has received an order from AES Gener for 20 megawatts of A123 advanced energy storage solutions for a spinning reserve project.
The is AES’s second project in Chile to use A123 energy storage technology, A123 noted.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:14 AM | Comments (0)
iRobot announces international orders
Video taken from iRobot's website.
iRobot Corp., a Bedford-based robot company, said it has received international orders totaling $4.4 million in the first quarter of 2011 for the delivery of 27 iRobot 510 PackBot tactical mobile robots and spare parts.
In a press release, the company noted that its 510 PackBot performs such jobs as bomb disposal and reconnaissance missions.
In 2010, iRobot's Government and Industrial Robots division received international orders totaling $13.2 million, said the company, which added that the emerging international market is "an important growth opportunity for iRobot."
Posted by globebusiness at 8:38 AM | Comments (0)
Circor buy strengthens its position in Brazil
Circor International Inc., a Burlington company that designs, manufactures and distributes ball, check, control and safety relief valves as well as pipeline measurement solutions for oil and gas applications, said it has bought a Brazilian company to strengthen its position in Brazil.
In a press release, Circor said it has acquired Válvulas S.F. Indústria e Comércio Ltda., a Brazil-based manufacturer of valves for the energy market, for an undisclosed amount. SF Valves generated about $20 million in revenues in 2010, and Circor said it expects that the acquisition will be accretive to earnings in the first year.
In a statement, Circor chairman, president, and chief executive Bill Higgins referenced Petrobras, the Brazil-based global energy giant.
"Circor now has a platform to increase sales to Petrobras, which is expected to invest $200 billion in oil and gas exploration, production and processing in the next few years," Higgins said.
Posted by globebusiness at 8:27 AM | Comments (0)
Mullen: Chrysler ad is Super Bowl’s best
The Chrysler ad as shown on Youtube.com
There's likely to be much hubbub about the water-cooler this morning over which brand had the best Super Bowl ad, but for Mullen, the Boston ad agency, there was a clear winner.
Using a methodology that monitored Twitter activity, Boston ad agency Mullen declared shortly after the big game that Chrysler was the "most effective brand" to invest in Super Bowl air time and that Cars.com was the least effective.
Mullen worked with a company called Radian6 and Boston.com to present an analysis of the ads called BrandBowl 2011.
In a press release, Mullen said: "The Radian6 platform determined the results by pulling in the full data stream from Twitter. The results were measured on not only the volume of conversations, but also the positive/negative sentiment surrounding the conversations."
As the release noted, Chrysler's winning ad featured pop star Eminem delivering an ode of sorts to his native Detroit.
Posted by globebusiness at 6:45 AM | Comments (0)
February 4, 2011
BG Medicine stock starts trading $7 per share
Shares of life sciences company BG Medicine Inc. debuted at $7 today and are rising sharply in midday trading.
The stock rose $1.30 cents, or 18.6 percent, to $8.30 under the symbol "BGMD."
The Waltham company is selling 5 million shares of stock, up slightly from the 4.8 million it had expected to sell. The underwriters of its initial public offering will have the option to buy another 750,000 shares.
BG Medicine's main product, BGM Galectin-3, is a test for a protein involved in heart failure. The manual version of its test was approved by US regulators in October, and the company expects at least one of its partners to file for marketing approval of an automated version later this year.
Posted by globebusiness at 1:44 PM | Comments (0)
Bus line offers free rides to NYC
World Wide Bus
Boston and New York have long had a love-hate relationship, but a bus company new to the local market wants to show love to both cities by offering free rides as part of a Valentine's Day promotion from World Wide Bus.
In a crowded and highly competitive bus route, round-trip free rides are bound to grab some attention for World Wide Bus, which began running service last year between Cambridge and Newton to near Penn Station in New York City.
World Wide Bus said its offer is good for travel from Monday Feb. 14 through Thursday Feb. 17; on each of those days, the company has four departures scheduled from the Boston area to New York and four departures from Manhattan to the Boston area.
"Visit your beloved, or bring that special someone and paint the town red," World Wide Bus said in a press release. "Don’t worry about driving, the cost of gas, or paying tolls. The ride is on World Wide Bus!"
Tickets will be made available online Feb. 8, starting at 10:00 a.m., said the company, adding: "This is FIRST COME, FIRST SERVE! Maximum is two round-trips per person."
World Wide Bus also said: "There is only one way to obtain a free ticket: Riders must log on to the World Wide Bus website, www.worldwidebus.com, to reserve their free tickets."
The company said it expects to offer more than 1,000 free rides during the promotion.
In the Boston area, World Wide Bus drops off and picks up passengers at the MBTA's Alewife Station in Cambridge and Riverside Station in Newton.
Like much of its competition, Worldwide Bus offers free wireless Internet access.
Posted by globebusiness at 1:05 PM | Comments (0)
Sun Life inks golfing pitchman
Sun Life Financial
Sun Life Financial said it has signed up golfer Hunter Mahan to promote its products in deal that the company said is its first sponsorship in the world of professional golf.
Sun Life, a Canadian company, has its US headquarters in Wellesley. The partnership was arranged between Sun Life and Wasserman Media Group, which represents Mahan (shown above).
The deal calls for the Sun Life logo to be "prominently displayed on the side of Mahan's headwear during all competitive events," Sun Life said in a press release.
Priscilla Brown, senior vice president and head of US marketing for Sun Life, said in a statement, "The sponsorship provides Sun Life with significant broadcast exposure that reaches a key demographic and an opportunity to connect with golf fans everywhere."
Posted by globebusiness at 12:14 PM | Comments (0)
Hologic receives approval for premature birth drug
BEDFORD -- A drug from Hologic Inc. designed to prevent premature birth was approved by federal regulators, the company said Friday, but ongoing studies will be required.
Makena, previously called Gestiva, has faced years of delays at the US Food and Drug Administration. The agency issued an "approvable" letter for the drug in October 2006, but again delayed a decision in January 2009 with a request for more information.
Makena is intended for use by women who have experienced spontaneous premature birth before.
The FDA said Friday that Hologic must do additional studies to demonstrate that the drug has a "clinical benefit," under the accelerated approval process. An international trial is ongoing to learn if there is also improvement in the outcome of babies born to women given the drug.
Under a deal with Bridgeton, Mo.-based KV Pharmaceutical Co., Hologic will begin transferring assets for Makena. That transfer is expected to be complete by Feb. 11.
Hologic has already received $79.5 million in cash payments from KV, plus reimbursements. It expects to receive an additional $12.5 million payment.
Posted by globebusiness at 10:33 AM | Comments (0)
Workshops school job seekers in social networking
Many One-Stop Career Centers in Massachusetts are now offering social networking workshops designed to train job seekers in Internet technologies that many employers are now using to not only hire, but also run their businesses, the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development said.
A recent study by the University at Massachusetts-Dartmouth found that many companies are relying on social networking sites like LinkedIn and Twitter as a marketing tool.
"These companies are not only searching for their next employees on these sites, but are expecting them to jump right into the social networking world once hired," the executive office said.
More information is available by clicking on this page of the office's website.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:50 AM | Comments (0)
Ameresco helps Children’s Hospital get greener
Ameresco Inc., a Framingham company that helps customers to become more energy efficient, said that it has finalized the fifth phase of its energy efficiency agreement with Children's Hospital Boston.
"Since Ameresco started working with the hospital in 2002, it has undertaken five phases of comprehensive energy audits and turnkey energy retrofits that have resulted in significant savings for Children's Hospital Boston including an average of $950,000 in annual utility cost savings and $76,000 in annual maintenance cost savings," the company said in a press release.
Initiatives include lighting upgrades, the installation of water conserving plumbing fixtures, and the installation of chilled water and steam pipe insulation, Ameresco said.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:25 AM | Comments (0)
TripAdvisor buys EveryTrail
TripAdvisor, the Newton-based travel review website, said it has bought a California company called EveryTrail to help provide more information to travelers with smartphones.
Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
EveryTrail has developed a GPS-enabled publishing platform to create outdoor tours and city guides for mobile devices, TripAdvisor said in a press release.
"Every day, more people are opting to use mobile apps as a way of consuming travel information," Adam Medros, vice president of global product for TripAdvisor, said in a statement. "EveryTrail bolsters our continued commitment to grow TripAdvisor's mobile offering, and enable travelers to access walking tours, city guides, and hiking trails directly from their smartphones."
TripAdvisor is an operating company of Expedia Inc., a travel products and services company based in Washington state.
Posted by globebusiness at 8:34 AM | Comments (0)
Sam Adams: Have a ‘hoppy’ Valentine’s Day
Many women love to get flowers and chocolate on Valentine's Day, but to make sure that women also have options to show affection to the ones they love, the maker of Samuel Adams has come up with a "beer-themed" gift virtually guaranteed to buck up a lager-loving Romeo.
Or as a helpful press release from Sam Adams puts its: "Guys across the country are sure to crave the new Samuel Adams Hoppy Valentine's Day gift basket."
Alas, the basket doesn't seem to feature a Valentine ale, but there are many other goodies, including "artisanal salami." (The basket is shown here in a photo provided by Samuel Adams.)
In teaming up with FromYouFlowers.com, Samuel Adams has devised a gift basket that includes two Samuel Adams Boston Lager Pint Glasses with hops, a Samuel Adams keychain, organic dark chocolate with orange and a hint of spice, artisanal salami, gourmet smoked gouda cheese, and an assortment of mixed nuts, according to the press release from Boston Beer Co., the creator of the Samuel Adams brand.
"Men are typically overlooked on Valentine's Day, so we wanted to come up with a way for them to receive something they actually want and will enjoy," Samuel Adams founder and brewer Jim Koch said in a statement. "Since hops, which are an ingredient in beer, are actually flowers, we thought a beer-themed basket would be a refreshing addition to a holiday dominated by gifts for women. Couple the basket with a six-pack of Samuel Adams Boston Lager, and you have the perfect gift."
Posted by globebusiness at 7:54 AM | Comments (0)
Vertex books bigger 4Q loss on research costs
CAMBRIDGE -- Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. reported a larger fourth-quarter loss on Thursday as it spent more money to develop its hepatitis C drug candidate telaprevir, along with a potential cystic fibrosis treatment and other drugs.
With its research and development costs up 25 percent, Vertex said it lost $180.4 million, or 90 cents per share, in the last three months of 2010. A year ago it booked a smaller loss of $158.6 million, or 86 cents per share. Revenue nearly doubled to $65.5 million from $33.9 million.
Analysts had expected a loss of 92 cents per share and $38.8 million in revenue, according to FactSet.
Vertex has applied for marketing approval of telaprevir in the U.S., Europe, and Canada. The Food and Drug Administration is expected to make a decision by May 23. Vertex is also waiting for data from a late-stage clinical trial of VX-770, its cystic fibrosis drug, and running a mid-stage clinical trial of a regimen that combines telaprevir with another one of its hepatitis C drug candidates, VX-222. The company expects results from that study later in the first quarter.
Vertex said it plans to file for approval of VX-770 in the U.S. and Europe in the second half of 2011.
The company said its research and development costs climbed to $168.9 million from $135.2 million a year ago. However revenue from partnerships more than doubled to $57.1 million from $25.5 million. Royalty revenue was unchanged at $8.4 million.
For the full year, Vertex lost $754.6 million, or $3.77 per share, compared with a loss of $642.2 million, or $3.71 per share, in 2009. Revenue grew 41 percent, to $143.4 million from $101.9 million.
"We believe that our financial position will support our key business objectives through 2012, at which time we expect to begin generating earnings as a cashflow positive company," said Matthew Emmens, chairman, president and CEO, in a statement.
Shares of Vertex fell 17 cents to close at $38.80 on Thursday.
Posted by globebusiness at 6:08 AM | Comments (0)
February 3, 2011
NY Times Co. reports profit drop
The New York Times Co. said its net income fell 26 percent in the fourth quarter, to $67.1 million, or 44 cents a share, when compared to the same period a year ago, and warned that advertising was still volatile.
On an operating basis, excluding severance and other special items, the company said it earned $146.4 million in the quarter, or 46 cents a share. That result exceeded Wall Street estimates of 34 cents a share, but the stock fell as much as 6 percent in morning trading, as the company reported a 2.9 percent drop in revenues.
Shares rebounded to $10.61, down 1 percent, in afternoon trading.
Revenues of $661.7 million were helped by an 11 percent rise in digital advertising, but could not overcome a 7 percent decline in print advertising revenues. For the full year, revenues were down nearly 2 percent, to $2.4 billion, the Times Co. said in a press release.
“In 2010 we demonstrated further progress toward our long-term strategy of re-engineering our company,’’ said Janet L. Robinson, the Times Co.’s chief executive.
She said the company grew its operating profit, excluding special items, by 20 percent for the year, to $384.3 million, and kept a "relentless focus on managing costs."
Advertising revenues in the Times Co.'s New England Media Group, which includes The Boston Globe, fell 2.6 percent in the fourth quarter from a year earlier, to $61 million. For the full year, ad revenues fell 7.4 percent, to $213.7 million.
Circulation revenues in New England were roughly flat for the year, at $167.4 million. Total revenue for the New England group was $113.2 million in the quarter, down 3.3 percent. Revenue for the year was down 3.8 percent, at $423.9 million.
Robinson said advertising remained volatile during the fourth quarter. After a promising October and November, she said, advertisers showed caution over the economic recovery in December.
Digital advertising revenue made up 26 percent of total ad revenues in the quarter.
Posted by globebusiness at 2:30 PM | Comments (0)
Hayward Place developer looks to move forward
The developer of Hayward Place, a proposed residential-and-retail building for Downtown Crossing, said today that it has submitted an application to the city to modify the building's earlier design and added that it hopes to begin construction on the stalled project in early summer.
An earlier proposal envisioned a 14-story building of roughly 200 residential units; the new plan is for 15 stories and 265 residential units, a mix of condos and rental apartments, said the developer, Millennium Partners-Boston.
By reducing the height between floors and decreasing the size of the units, the building will measure 155 feet high, the same height as with the earlier proposal, said Anthony Pangaro, principal of Millennium Partners-Boston.
The building will fill the full city block bordered by Washington Street, Avenue de Lafayette, Harrison Avenue, and Hayward Place, Millennium Partners-Boston said in a press release. The site is directly across the street from the Ritz-Carlton Hotel and Towers, a Millennium Partners-Boston development.
"In spite of the still somewhat unclear economic climate, we want to start building Hayward Place early in the summer of this year," Pangaro said in a statement.
The Millennium Partners-Boston press release included a statement from Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino.
"This project represents a dramatic $200 million in private investment that will be a tremendous boost for Downtown Crossing and the Theatre District," Menino said. "Millennium Partners was there for Boston with its Ritz-Carlton Towers and as a leader in the City's first Business Improvement District; and is with us again today helping by bring nearly 300 jobs, $2 million in annual tax revenue, and 24-hour vitality to our city."
Posted by globebusiness at 1:15 PM | Comments (0)
DuPont’s Kullman to address BC CEO Club
DuPont chief executive Ellen Kullman is scheduled to be the keynote speaker at the Boston College Chief Executives’ Club of Boston luncheon Feb. 10 at the Boston Harbor Hotel’s Wharf Room.
The lunch is by invitation only. With 58,000 employees and annual revenues exceeding $27.3 billion, DuPont is the nation’s second largest chemical and science-based products and services company.
In her remarks to the Chief Executives’ Club of Boston, Kullman, DuPont’s first woman chief executive, is expected to discuss the role of bio-science and the importance of a collaborative approach to the global necessity of increasing food productivity, reducing dependence on fossil fuels and protecting people and the environment, BC said in a media advisory.
Posted by globebusiness at 12:48 PM | Comments (0)
Hotels can hire bedbug-sniffing dogs
The Boston bed-bug business Sniff K9's, which uses dogs to detect the mattress-dwelling pests and heat to kill them, has launched a bed-bug certification program for hotels and retailers.
It's the country's first program to certify facilities as "bed-bug safe," according to Sniff K9's.
The process involves regular inspections of guest rooms and training for housekeeping staff at hotels, and inspections of stock and fitting rooms and returned items for retail stores. Businesses certified by the company, including the Seaport Boston Hotel and Hotel Veritas in Cambridge, will be given a badge that can be used on their signs and websites and will be listed on an online directory of bed-bug-safe facilities.
Posted by globebusiness at 12:12 PM | Comments (0)
Boston-Power has new CEO
Boston-Power Inc., a Westborough company that provides lithium-ion battery cells, battery modules and battery management systems, said that Keith Schmid has been appointed as chief executive.
With the the appointment of Schmid (shown at right in a company photo), company founder Christina Lampe-Önnerud will become executive chairman, the company said in a press release.
"In this position, working closely with Schmid, she will continue her focus on guiding the company's vision, strategy, and innovation-to-market-development initiatives and serving as a key spokesperson," Boston-Power said.
Schmid joins Boston-Power from Power Distribution, Inc., a provider of power distribution equipment and services, where he served as president and chief executive.
Posted by globebusiness at 10:32 AM | Comments (0)
Sunovion schizophrenia drug is now available
Marlborough drug company Sunovion Pharmaceuticals Inc. said that Latuda tablets, a treatment for adults with schizophrenia, is now available by prescription in pharmacies across the United States and Puerto Rico.
Latuda was approved for this use by the Food and Drug Administration in October, the company said in a press release, and added that it regards Latuda as a leading product for the company.
The company may be best known for Lunesta, a sleep aid that it widely advertises.
Sunovion is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma Co. Ltd. of Japan, which disclosed plans to buy the company, then known as Sepracor Inc., in 2009.
Posted by globebusiness at 10:11 AM | Comments (0)
TJX reports above-plan January sales
T.J. Maxx website
TJX Cos., the Framingham company that operates such chains as T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, and HomeGoods, said its January sales were "above plan" despite less than ideal shopping weather and added that it expects fourth-quarter earnings to exceed its forecast.
January sales were $1.35 billion, up 8 percent from sales in January 2010. At stores open at least a year, last month's sales were up 2 percent, the company said in a press release.
"We now expect fourth quarter adjusted earnings per share to be slightly above the high end of our prior range of $.97 - $1.01 with a corresponding increase for the full year," Carol Meyrowitz, TJX chief executive, said in a statement.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:36 AM | Comments (0)
BJ's confirms it is exploring a possible sale
BJ's Wholesale Club Inc., the Westborough-based chain of warehouse club stores, said today that it has "decided to explore and evaluate strategic alternatives, including a possible sale of the company."
In a press release, the company added that it has engaged Morgan Stanley & Co. Inc. as its financial advisor to assist in this process.
In July, Leonard Green & Partners LP, a Los Angeles private equity firm that has investments in retail chains such as Sports Authority and Whole Foods, took a 9.5 percent stake in BJ's; that move touched off speculation that BJ's could be taken private.
Officials from Leonard Green and Morgan Stanley could not be immediately reached for comment this morning.
"Last year, Leonard Green bought a large amount of BJ's stock," BJ's spokeswoman Kelly McFalls said in a telephone interview this morning. "They would not have made that decision unless they saw BJ's as an attractive well-run business. Since then, it's become clear that the company should find out whether a sale of BJ's or another transaction could create value for our shareholders, including Leonard Green."
McFalls said the independent committee, which this week made the recommendation to explore alternatives including a sale, is comprised of members from BJ's board of directors. But she would not specify the individuals.
"We don't have a timeline for when a decision will be made on what strategic alternative to pursue," McFalls said. "But we plan to stay the course in terms of investing in our clubs, remodeling, technology, and our people."
BJ's has 950 workers at its new headquarters in Westborough, and a total of 23,000 people work for the chain, which is opening its 190th club store this weekend.
BJ's has been in unenviable position of competing against two larger rivals, Costco and Sam's Clubs, a chain operated by Wal-Mart Stores Inc.
Last month, BJ's disclosed plans to shutter five stores, slash nearly 500 jobs, and shuffle senior management, a recent Globe story noted.
Separately this morning, BJ's reported that January sales increased by 6.5 percent to $779.8 million compared to January 2010.
For the year ended Jan. 29, total sales increased by 8.3 percent to $10.6 billion, BJ's said.
Posted by globebusiness at 7:48 AM | Comments (0)
Dunkin’ says 2010 was a strong year
The Canton company that operates the Dunkin' Donuts and Baskin-Robbins chains said today that preliminary results indicate that the two chains had global system-wide sales for fiscal 2010 of about $7.7 billion, up nearly 7 percent from $7.2 billion for fiscal 2009.
The parent company, Dunkin' Brands Inc., said that Dunkin' Donuts added 574 net new locations during fiscal 2010. When Baskin-Robbins ice cream stores are added, the company said it ended 2010 with 800 global net new locations. At the end of fiscal 2010, the company said it had 16,193 locations in 52 countries.
Roughly five years ago, Bain Capital and Thomas H. Lee Partners, two of Boston's largest buyout companies, and the Carlyle Group of Washington, D.C., bought Dunkin' and sister brands Baskin-Robbins ice cream and Togo's sandwich shops for $2.43 billion.
At about that time, the new owners announced ambitious expansion plans for Dunkin' Donuts, saying they were looking to rapidly expand to nearly 15,000 US locations by 2020, up from from about 5,000 in 2006.
In a statement today, Nigel Travis, chief executive of Dunkin' Brands and president of Dunkin' Donuts, said: "Last year was a tremendous growth year for Dunkin' Brands and for Dunkin' Donuts in particular, which opened 206 net new restaurants in the US alone. We have an incredible community of franchisees who provide guests with a great experience on a daily basis and who are important contributors to our brand's growth. In 2010, the majority of new Dunkin' Donuts U.S. restaurants and a significant number of new development agreements came from existing franchisees, which we believe shows tremendous confidence in the brand."
Another 2010 high-light: Dunkin' Donuts signed multi-store development agreements in 29 US markets, including Milwaukee, Detroit, Tallahassee, Nashville, and Chicago.
Most restaurants in the two chains are owned by franchisees. System-wide sales represents total revenues taken in by all stores, whether company owned or franchisee owned. Franchisees pay a range of fees to parent company Dunkin' Brands.
Dunkin' Brands said it expects to report "total revenues for fiscal 2010 in the range of approximately $575 million to $580 million compared to $538 million for fiscal 2009, an increase of approximately 7 percent."
Posted by globebusiness at 7:14 AM | Comments (0)
February 2, 2011
Time Warner Cable buys NaviSite for $230m
Cable and Internet service provider Time Warner Cable Inc. said Tuesday that it will buy NaviSite Inc. for roughly $230 million in a bid to offer more Web-based services to its business customers.
The deal values NaviSite at $5.50 per share, a 33 percent premium over its Tuesday closing price of $4.13.
NaviSite, based in Andover, hosts applications on remote servers, enabling businesses to get work done over the Internet, instead of bogging down local computers with comparable software programs.
The purchase allows Time Warner to offer more services to the businesses already subscribing to its Internet, phone and cable services. It also gives Time Warner access to NaviSite's 1,200-plus customers.
"Our commercial services business is a key growth driver for the company and one in which we continue to see great opportunity," said Glenn Britt, Time Warner Cable's chairman and chief executive officer.
The purchase comes a week after Verizon Communications Inc. said it would buy Terremark Worldwide Inc. for $1.4 billion with a similar plan of offering Web-based services to corporate customers.
Time Warner Cable said it expects the purchase to close in the second quarter of 2011 and that it expects the transaction to boost earnings per share. The company added that it does not expect the acquisition to have a substantial impact on the company's debt-to-assets ratio.
The company also said it expects NaviSite's net operating losses to translate to $40 million in tax savings following the close of the purchase.
Posted by globebusiness at 3:30 PM | Comments (0)
Chase says it will open mortgage help center
JPMorgan Chase & Co. said it will make available representatives to speak in-person with Massachusetts borrowers who are having trouble keeping up with their mortgage payments.
The national lender plans to open a Chase Homeownership Center in the Boston area sometime this year as a way to assist customers struggling because of a drop in salary, unemployment, or a ballooning subprime mortgage. It did not offer more details about the location or opening date.
“The best way to help borrowers find ways to stay in their homes is to sit down face-to-face and discuss their individual circumstances,'' said David Lowman, cq chief executive of Chase Home Lending.
The Massachusetts office will be one of 25 centers to be opened by the company this year, expanding its effort to 76 centers in 27 states. Chase said representatives have met with 120,000 customers since 2009, providing borrowers with a "single point of contact" to help them fill out loan modification applications, collect documents and finalize paperwork.
Posted by globebusiness at 1:01 PM | Comments (0)
Comcast: Watch TV and movies on your iPad
Comcast
Comcast Corp. said today that its Xfinity TV customers may now have the option of watching many TV programs and movies on their iPad, a tablet computer marketed by Apple Inc.
This new feature is available as part of an updated version of the Xfinity TV app, which is offered for free to Xfinity TV digital customers, Comcast said in a press release. With the app, hundreds of TV programs and movies are available for subscribers to stream directly to the iPad (shown above).
“The Xfinity TV app with video streaming is part of our ongoing effort to deliver great entertainment experiences for our customers on all screens and devices,” Matt Strauss, senior vice president and general manager of Comcast Interactive Media said in a statement.
Posted by globebusiness at 12:58 PM | Comments (0)
Boston Scientific shares fall on daunting outlook
Shares of Boston Scientific slumped today after the medical device maker said increased price competition and lower demand would limit sales of its heart devices in the coming year.
The Natick-based medical device company reported fourth-quarter earnings late Tuesday that met Wall Street expectations, primarily due to lower legal and acquisition expenses.
But looking ahead, chief executive Ray Elliott said 2011 would be a "transitional year" and that lower prices and purchasing by hospitals would continue to squeeze profits.
"The increasing influence of economic buyers in the US and Europe and increased competition in some of our key markets is clearly having a negative impact on price," Elliott told analysts on a call.
Shares of Boston Scientific fell 35 cents, or 4.9 percent, to $6.78 in midday trading.
The company predicted revenue would be flat or fall 5 percent in the coming year, with earnings per share between 50 and 60 cents per share. That's down from the 69 cents per share for 2010.
Analysts struggled to find good news in the company's report, asking executives about cost-saving measures put in place last year. Elliott said those savings have been realized but will be invested in the company's long-term growth plan, which so far has meant the acquisition of smaller companies.
"As I look at 2012, without getting into specific guidance, there's an awful lot of great stuff there, but if we don't set the table and invest now ... you don't get to do a really great job in 2012 and 2015," Elliott said.
Elliott took over Boston Scientific in 2009 after heading orthopedics maker Zimmer Holdings for 10 years. Elliott's attempts to sure up the company's financial footing have been challenged by a series of legal settlements, combined with lagging sales of medical devices to cash-strapped hospitals.
Leerink Swann analyst Rick Wise told investors the company's outlook "is a sober reminder of the many challenges Boston Scientific needs to overcome to get back on a more consistent growth and profitability trajectory."
Wise holds an "outperform" rating on the company's stock.
Posted by globebusiness at 12:16 PM | Comments (0)
Thermo Fisher Scientific reports 4Q profit
Waltham scientific instrument maker Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. said its adjusted earnigns per share grew 10 percent to a record $1.00, on revenue of $2.78 billion, down 2 percent on a year-to-year basis.
The unfavorable effect of currency translation partly accounted for the revenue decrease, the company said in a press release.
Net income for the quarter was $297.5 million, up 10.7 percent from the same quarter a year ago, the company said.
For the full year, revenues grew 7 percent to $10.79 billion, and adjusted earnings per share increased 17 percent to a record $3.57, the company said. Net income was $1.035 billion, up 9.6 percent.
"We had a great year in 2010," Marc N. Casper, company president and chief executive, said in a statement. "We achieved our financial goals by successfully executing our plan and reinforced our leading position through continued innovation and commercial expansion."
Posted by globebusiness at 10:02 AM | Comments (0)
New Fidelity program aims at retiring boomers
Fidelity Investments said today that it is launching a new program of educational resources and investment tools specifically tailored for people near or living in retirement as millions of baby boomers contemplate retirement.
One part of the program is the "Income Strategy Evaluator," which is designed to help baby boomers assess their income needs and structure a portfolio accordingly, said Fidelity, a Boston company whose products include retirement savings plans.
Other components of the program include online educational materials, a scenario-building tool, and one-on-one guidance sessions with a Fidelity planner. To get the word out, Fidelity said it has scheduled roughly 200 seminars over the next month at various Fidelity offices around the country.
"Nearly 3 million Baby Boomers will turn 65 this year - about 7,500 per day - and begin their transition into a retirement which must account for longer life spans, stock market volatility, a low interest rate environment, rising heath care costs, a changing tax landscape, and high unemployment rates," Kathleen A. Murphy, president of Personal Investing at Fidelity, said in a statement.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:27 AM | Comments (0)
VC investment in clean tech rose 8% in 2010
US venture capital investment in cleantech companies increased by 8 percent to $3.98 billion in 2010, according to a report issued today in Boston.
The report is an Ernst & Young LLP analysis of data from Dow Jones VentureSource. According to a press release on the report, VC investment in cleantech in Q4 2010 reached $979 million with 72 financing rounds, flat in terms of deals and down 14 percent in terms of capital invested compared to Q4 2009.
Clean technology is a priority of Governor Deval Patrick
Posted by globebusiness at 8:49 AM | Comments (0)
Staples Super Bowl ad to focus on tech products
Staples Inc., the office-supply giant headquartered in Framingham, said it will highlight new technologies and services available in its retail stores in a new ad that will be aired in regional markets during the Super Bowl.
The TV ad, which features flying laptops, is part of an integrated marketing campaign will launch Super Bowl Sunday. Plans call for the ad to be aired on network and cable shows such as Castle, Private Practice, 30 Rock, and NCIS as well as the Super Bowl. The campaign will include radio spots and digital ads, and the ad agency that worked with Staples in developing the campaign is McCann Erickson, New York.
One message of the campaign: Staples has just about every technology product a small business needs, and its "EasyTech associates" have the training to help customers make good purchase decisions about those products. Staples, the ad says, "the one place that makes technology easy."
Jevin Eagle, executive vice president, merchandising, and marketing at Staples, explained some of the thinking behind the campaign in a statement included in a Staples press release.
"We're already a force in technology and now we're taking our game to the next level with EasyTech associates and store redesigns that provide even more space for technology and services," Eagle said. "Staples is staying at the forefront of technology, building off the phenomenal success with the Amazon Kindle during the holiday season, and gearing up to be a major destination for tablets this spring."
To see the Staples TV commercial, please click here.
Posted by globebusiness at 7:23 AM | Comments (0)
February 1, 2011
Drug giant Pfizer to add jobs in Mass.
Drug giant Pfizer Inc. today said it will add about 350 jobs in the Boston area and look for a new site to house a pair of research operations it will move from southeastern Connecticut.
The news came as Pfizer, the world's largest pharmaceutical company, unveiled a broad restructuring plan that will slash its global research and development spending by $1.5 billion, shedding thousands of jobs around the world. It was the second big research cutback since New York-based Pfizer acquired Wyeth Pharmaceuticals in 2009.
But even as Pfizer will be shrinking its research profile globally, it will grow in Massachusetts, where it currently employs about 2,300 workers at two research labs in Cambridge and a former Wyeth biotechnology plant in Andover.
"We have recognized that we want to have a very significant footprint in Massachusetts," sad J.C. Gutierrez Ramos, the Cambridge-based Pfizer senior vice president of biotherapeutics research and development. "This emphasizes Pfizer's commitment to increase our interactions with the academic medical centers, our interactions with the biotechnology companies and entrepreneurs, with all of the stakeholders in biomedical research."
Shares of Pfizer jumped 5.5 percent to $19.22 on the New York Stock Exchange by 2:30 p.m., a gain of $1.
Pfizer's move to expand research in the Boston area follows similar recent moves by global drugmakers such as Novartis AG of Switzerland and Sanofi-Aventis SA of France, which want to tap into the area's life sciences ecosystem at a time when drug discovery has slowed worldwide.
Even as it eliminates 1,100 jobs in Groton, Conn., about a quarter of its workforce there, Pfizer said it will be consolidating its neuroscience and cardiovascular metabolic research operations in the Boston area.
Together, they are expected to bring about 450 jobs to Massachusetts, Gutierrez said. But Pfizer will also cut about 100 other jobs in the Boston area, mostly at a lab it will close on Memorial Drive in Cambridge. That lab does regenerative medicine and oligonuceotide therapeutics research, areas Pfizer will continue to be involved in collaboration with other partners.
Posted by globebusiness at 3:22 PM | Comments (0)
Mass. pension fund posts 14 percent gain
The Massachusetts pension fund gained nearly 14 percent in 2010 and increased its assets by nearly $6 billion, slightly outpacing the fund's goals.
Strong financial markets in December helped the results as bonds, private equity, and stocks produced high double-digit gains. Hedge funds were the laggards, returning just 6.3 percent for the year -- a disappointing result that helped fuel a move to change the way the state manages these investments.
About 8 percent of the $48.3 billion state fund is invested in hedge funds, all of that through middlemen called funds-of-funds that spread the money across a number of firms. The pension board today agreed to start managing some of the $3.6 billion directly in hedge funds, instead of through the middlemen. Under the plan, the board would hire a consultant to help it invest about $500 million directly in top hedge funds.
The state currently pays nearly $30 million in fees to the funds-of-funds. That's on top of the significant fees that the underlying hedge funds charge.
"We think we can save significant fees, and we think we can eliminate significant manager overlap,'' said Steve Grossman, the new state treasurer and chairman of the pension board. The pilot test is scheduled to be underway by year end. If it goes well, Grossman said, the state would likely invest much more of the hedge fund money directly.
The pension fund's executive director, Michael G. Trotsky, a former hedge fund manager who became head of the pension's management group last summer, has questioned whether the state is getting its money's worth for access to hedge funds. The state has lost small amounts of money in some hedge fund investments after a number of scandals and failures in recent years.
The current review of funds-of-funds was sparked in part by last year's FBI raids on a number of hedge funds for alleged insider trading. The state at first didn't even know if it had exposure to the raided funds, because the intermediary firms don't disclose where they invest unless asked under such extreme circumstances. The pension fund learned that it did have $66 million in two of the raided funds, and that three of the firms it does business with all had small amounts of money with one of the raided firms.
The move to invest directly in some hedge funds comes as the new treasurer starts his review of the pension fund. Former Treasurer Timothy P. Cahill led the charge for hedge fund investments at the state starting in 2004, but he championed funds-of-funds, arguing that they were the least risky way to invest in the sector.
Grossman, citing the recent FBI raids, said, "I don't think you avoid the risk by going though the fund-of-funds approach."
Posted by globebusiness at 3:07 PM | Comments (0)
Mass. regulators approve reduced utility rate hike
State utilities regulators have reduced electric rate hike increases proposed by Western Massachusetts Electric Co.
The Department of Public Utilities approved a rate hike of $17 million rather than the $28 million sought.
The DPU says the change will mean a 0.4 percent increase in the monthly electric bill of a typical residential customer using 600 kilowatt hours of electricity.
WMECO, a division of Northeast Utilities, said it sought the hike to improve its system and make service more reliable. WMECO said it had tried to balance customer needs and the economic impact on them, but will go forward "within the framework of the decision."
The DPU says the reduced hike would still allow the company to make needed investments while spurring energy conservation efforts. The company serves 210,000 customers in 59 communities.
Posted by globebusiness at 2:37 PM | Comments (0)
Landmark Center is sold for $530.5m
The Abbey Group said today that it has sold Landmark Center, an office and retail complex near Fenway Park, for $530.5 million.
The buyer is a joint venture between JP Morgan Investment Management Inc. and Samuels & Associates, said the Abbey Group, a Boston real estate company.
Cushman & Wakefield, a real estate firm, represented the seller and procured the buyer in the transaction.
Tenants at Lanmark Center include Blue Cross Blue Shield, Harvard School of Public Health, Harvard Medical School, Regal Entertainment Group, Bed Bath & Beyond, and Best Buy, the Abbey Group said.
A Globe story in November noted that the Abbey Group was close to reaching deal. That story noted that the Abbey Group spent $115 million renovating the former Sears, Roebuck & Co. warehouse into the Landmark Center in the 1990s.
Posted by globebusiness at 2:16 PM | Comments (0)
Dunkin’ will celebrate Feb. with chocolate donuts
February is "chocolate lovers month," according to Dunkin' Donuts, and it plans to celebrate the culinary festivities with "a new line of yeast raised chocolate donuts" to augment its offerings of chocolate cake style donuts.
In a press release, the Canton-based coffee-and-baked-goods chain said its "renowned culinary team has worked for several years to create a line of cocoa yeast donuts."
Among the new types that customers can try through the month of February are Cocoa Confetti, a chocolate yeast ring, topped with chocolate icing and rainbow sprinkles; Reverse Boston Kreme, a chocolate yeast shell filled with chocolate Bavarian Kreme and topped with vanilla icing; and Cocoa Kreme Puff, a sugared chocolate yeast shell filled with vanilla butter cream, Dunkin' Donuts said.
Dunkin' said it will also use its bagel and muffin platforms as chocolate delivery systems. Such items can be washed down with Mocha Coffee and Mocha Swirl Lattes, the chain added.
Posted by globebusiness at 2:03 PM | Comments (0)
Entegris 4Q profit more than doubles as sales soar
BILLERICA -- Entegris Inc.said today that its fourth-quarter profit more than doubled on a 24 percent increase in sales of its semiconductor components.
The results sent the company's stock to a two-year high in heavy trading.
For the three months ended Dec. 31, the company posted net income of $27 million, or 20 cents per share, compared with profit of $10.1 million, or 8 cents per share, in the 2009 quarter.
Adjusted for one-time items, profit for the 2010 quarter came to 23 cents per share.
Sales rose to $182.1 million, from $146.3 million the year prior.
nalysts, on average, were expecting adjusted profit of 19 cents per share, on revenue of 179.6 million, according to data from FactSet.
CEO Gideon Argov said ongoing investments among its customers drove fourth-quarter sales, and should drive increasing orders in 2011 and beyond for a wide range of Entegris products. "Our sales to other high-technology markets, including solar and LED, also continue to be very promising," he said
The company expects sales in the current quarter to range between $185 million and $190 million. It projected adjusted earnings between 18 cents and 20 cents per share.
Wall Street is expecting sales of $180.9 million and earnings of 19 cents per share, on average.
For the full year 2010, Entegris earned $84.4 million, or 63 cents per share, reversing a loss of $57.7 million, or 49 cents per share, in 2009. Sales shot up 73 percent to $688.4 million, from $398.6 million in 2009.
In midday trading, Entegris shares added 58 cents, or 7.6 percent, to $8.23, its highest point since January 2008. The stock previously ranged between $3.69 and $7.97 in the past 52 weeks.
Posted by globebusiness at 1:43 PM | Comments (0)
Meyrowitz has new agreement with TJX
TJX Cos., the Framingham company that operates such retail chains as T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, and HomeGoods, said today that chief executive Carol Meyrowitz, 56, has entered into another two-year employment agreement.
Ernie Herrman has also been promoted to president from his post of senior executive vice president, group president," TJX said.
Meyrowitz (shown at right in a Globe file photo) will now have Herrman and Jeffrey Naylor, senior executive vice president, chief financial and administrative officer, reporting to her, TJX said.
In a press release, TJX said the moves strengthen management structure for succession planning.
Posted by globebusiness at 11:01 AM | Comments (0)
Murray will chair Greenway Conservancy
A long-time executive in real estate and finance was selected today as the new chair of the nonprofit that operates the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway in Boston.
Georgia Murray of Boston will replace Peter Meade as chair of the Greenway Conservancy, taking the reins at a crucial juncture for the downtown park system, which is working to develop a new financial plan to pay for future improvements and maintenance.
"The Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway is an unprecedented opportunity- over 15 acres of parkland that offer us the ability to connect the city with the harbor and the neighborhoods, and to develop a special public space that provides a destination for the international community that is Boston,” Murray said after the Conservancy's board voted to make her chair today.
Murray, a board member since 2009, will serve an initial three year term. She worked for 26 years at The Boston Financial Group and now serves as a director of Franklin Street Properties Corp., a publicly traded real estate investment trust with a national portfolio. She is also on the board of First Commons Bank and is a past trustee of the Urban Land Institute.
Meade said he felt it was time to step down since leading the Conservancy since its inception in 2004. He is currently heading up efforts to establish the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate in Boston.
Posted by globebusiness at 10:42 AM | Comments (0)
Super Bowl ads could benefit from Mad Men effect
This photo from "Mad Men's" website shows Don Draper, played by Jon Hamm at left, and Bert Cooper, played by Robert Morse.
Sorry, mom, but your 18- to 34-year-old kids would rather watch Super Bowl ads than talk to you or praise your buffalo wings during the big-game party you worked so hard on to put together --- and you can partly blame it on "Mad Men," the AMC TV show about the golden age of advertising.
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"Young adults said they are looking forward to watching the ads more than spending time with their friends and family, the half-time show, and the national anthem, in that order," said Venables Bell & Partners, which claims that the popularity of "Mad Men" has heightened interest in ads.
In general, the 18-to-34-year-old demographic has been driving ad men mad and provoking them into drinking too many of Don Draper's Old-Fashioneds. (Draper is the name of a lead character in "Mad Men.) Many young persons would rather play Internet games and amuse themselves on Facebook than watch TV. And when they do watch TV shows, they'll often use digital video recorders to skip through ads.
But Venables Bell & Partners said its survey found that the 64 percent of young adults that would opt to watch the game with commercials versus commercial-free, and that 25 percent of that group would even pay a $.99 subscription fee to watch the ads during the game.
An earlier Super Bowl report from the agency noted that people, and particularly young adults, are expected to post something on Facebook about the game or Super Bowl ads or send a text message about an ad to some of their friends.
“Call it the ‘Mad Men’ effect, but young Americans’ intrigue with Super Bowl advertising seems to be at a steady increase, which is a great sign for marketers who’ve made the investment,” Lucy Farey-Jones, partner and head of strategy at Venables Bell & Partners said in a statement. “Take that passion – combined with their habit of multi-tasking on multiple technology platforms – and you get a consumer who is ready and willing to engage.”
Posted by globebusiness at 10:29 AM | Comments (0)
Local business confidence rose in January
The above graph was included with AIM's press release.
A Massachusetts business confidence index posted a 55.2 reading in January, up 2.8 points from the previous month's rating.
The index is maintained by the Associated Industries of Massachusetts, or AIM, a group that represents Massachusetts employers. The index uses a 100-point scale, a reading above 50 indicates an optimistic outlook; a reading below 50 suggests that employers have a pessimistic outlook on the economy.
“Four consecutive months in the positive range, above 50 on the Index’s 100-point scale, points to cautious but real optimism about the economy and business climate,” Raymond G. Torto, chair of AIM's Board of Economic Advisors, said in a statement. “The January survey results show that Massachusetts employers are regaining confidence in state and national economic conditions, and expect further improvement over the next six months.”
One word of caution: a report issued last week by the University of Massachusetts showed that the Bay State's economy slowed significantly in the fourth quarter of 2010, lagging behind the US economy for the first time in a year. To read a Globe story about that, please click here.
André Mayer, AIM's senior vice president of communications and research, noted that the higher confidence among Massachusetts employers in recent months is based primarily upon their perception that national conditions are improving.
"While parts of the Massachusetts economy have done relatively well as the recovery struggled to take hold nationally, many of our industries cannot thrive unless the national economy begins to grow more robustly," he said in an e-mail.
Posted by globebusiness at 10:00 AM | Comments (0)
Genzyme to sell pharma intermediates business
Genzyme Corp. said today it has entered into a purchase agreement under which a unit of International Chemical Investors Group will acquire Genzyme's pharmaceutical intermediates business.
"Financial terms are not material to Genzyme and were not disclosed," said Genzyme, which appears to be on the verge of being sold to French drug maker Sanofi-Aventis SA. (Click here to see a story about that in this morning's Globe.)
Genzyme, a Cambridge biotechnology company, also said in a press release that it has completed the previously announced sale of its diagnostic products business to Sekisui Chemical Co., Ltd. for $265 million in cash.
When that deal was disclosed in November, Genzyme chief executive Henri A. Termeer said the proposed sale was part of a strategy "to sharpen the company's focus and allocate our resources to key areas for our future growth such as manufacturing, our rare disease business, and our product pipeline."
Genzyme's diagnostics unit has about 475 employees, including about 100 based at its Framingham campus.
Meanwhile, Sanofi has been pursuing Genzyme for about six months and times, negotiations seemed stalled over Sanofi's proposed purchase price of $18.5 billion, which Genzyme deems as too low.
Today's story in the Globe said that Sanofi has raised its bid by an unspecified amount and quoted two peoople briefed on the negotiations as saying that a deal could be reached by next week.
Posted by globebusiness at 9:41 AM | Comments (0)
Genocea promotes Clark to chief executive
Genocea Biosciences Inc., a Cambridge vaccine discovery and development company, announced the promotion of Chip Clark to president and chief executive officer.
Clark joined Genocea as chief business officer in August and "played a critical role in closing the company's $35 million round of Series B financing announced last month," the company said in a press release.
Because of family health reasons, Staph Bakali stepped down as CEO but remains affiliated with the board, Genocea said.
Posted by globebusiness at 8:53 AM | Comments (0)
Biogen Idec reports strong Tysabri sales
Biogen Idec Inc., a Weston biotechnology company, said fourth-quarter revenues rose 8 percent to $1.2 billion, driven primarily by sales of its multiple sclerosis drugs such as Tysabri.
Tysabri revenues increased 12 percent to $242 million in the quarter, Biogen Idec said in a press release.
"Fourth quarter 2010 GAAP diluted EPS (earnings per share) were $0.99, a decrease of 7 percent over the fourth quarter of 2009," the company said. "GAAP net income attributable to Biogen Idec for the quarter was $240 million, a decrease of 21 percent from the fourth quarter of 2009. Fourth quarter 2010 non-GAAP diluted EPS were $1.42, an increase of 18 percent over the fourth quarter of 2009. Non-GAAP net income attributable to Biogen Idec for the quarter was flat, totaling $347 million."
Full-year 2010 revenues were $4.7 billion, up 8 percent.
Full-year 2010 diluted earnings per share (EPS) were $3.94, an increase of 18 percent over 2009," the company added. "GAAP net income attributable to Biogen Idec for 2010 was $1.0 billion, an increase of 4% over 2009."
"Our solid 2010 performance reflects the strength of our core business," company chief executive George A. Scangos said in a statement.
Looking ahead, Biogen Idec projected that revenue growth in the coming year should be between flat and low single digit versus 2010, and GAAP diluted EPS is expected to be above $4.82.
Posted by globebusiness at 7:42 AM | Comments (0)