Compiled by Mike Mason
TOP STORIES
ACC Capital Holdings, the parent of subprime mortgage lender Ameriquest Mortgage, said it plans to cut about a third of its staff,3,800 workers,including some local positions at its Orange headquarters. The layoffs are part of a restructuring at Ameriquest Mortgage and Town and Country Credit, another ACC unit that makes loans directly to borrowers. The company is closing 229 retail branches across the country, with the majority of layoffs coming from branch closures. It’s the second big job cut ACC has made in the past six months. In November, the company cut 1,500 jobs, including about 325 in Orange County … William Lyon, chairman and chief executive of Newport Beach-based William Lyon Homes Inc., increased by 9% his offer to buy all the shares of the company that he doesn’t already own. William Lyon’s latest offer of $109 a share is up from last month’s $100 a share bid to take the company he founded private. Lyon made an original bid of $93 a share in March. The latest offer values William Lyon Homes at about $940 million. Lyon said the offer is his final one.
Newport Beach-based Conexant Systems Inc. said it will pay Texas Instruments Inc. $70 million to settle a long-running patent dispute. The pact resolves any infringement claims against Conexant related to TI’s broadband asymmetric digital subscriber line patents. Conexant received a license from TI to use the technology. The settlement ends a legal battle chipmaker Conexant inherited from its acquisition of Red Bank, N.J.-based GlobespanVirata Inc. in 2004.
Irvine-based Allergan Inc. reported first-quarter results that were weighed down by charges from its buy of Inamed Corp. Allergan also lowered its outlook for the current quarter, the first full one with Inamed in the fold. Allergan’s operating income rose 7.3% to $152 million, excluding a $568 million research and development charge from Inamed. Santa Barbara-based Inamed, a maker of skin products, breast implants and an obesity treatment, was bought by Allergan for $3.2 billion at the end of March. Allergan’s quarterly sales were up 17% to $615.2 million, excluding about a week’s worth of sales from Inamed Fullerton-based Beckman Coulter Inc. reported lower first-quarter profits and sales but beat Wall Street’s expectations and upped its 2006 outlook. The lower quarterly results versus a year earlier stem from a change in the way Beckman accounts for leases of its instruments. In July, Beckman switched to operating leases, where revenue is spread over the life of the lease. Before, the company used a sales lease method, in which the value of the deal was recognized at once.
New York-based Assurant Inc. said it bought Safeco Financial Institution Solutions Inc., a Santa Ana-based unit of Safeco Corp. Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed. The unit has about 600 workers. It has OC operations in Santa Ana and Tustin, as well as a servicing division in Indianapolis. The Safeco unit, which produces about $140 million in annual premiums, is expected to become part of Assurant’s special property operation Chriss W. Street’s campaign for OC treasurer-tax collector lost the support of District Attorney Tony Rackauckas. The county’s top law enforcement officer withdrew his backing for Street, now assistant treasurer-tax collector and one of those credited with predicting the county’s 1990s bankruptcy, after an anonymous complaint was filed. The complaint is related to a trustee who alleged in a bankruptcy court filing that Street had mismanaged the pension plan for Fruehauf Trailer Corp. Street, meanwhile, filed a defamation suit against the Fruehauf trustee, who accused Street of “mismanagement, conflicts of interest and greed” two months ago Irvine-based New Century Financial Corp. again defied the slowing mortgage business with strong first-quarter results and an upbeat outlook. The company, which makes home loans to borrowers with imperfect credit, reported a 22% rise in quarterly income to $103.7 million. New Century made $13.4 billion in loans during the first quarter, a 31% increase from a year earlier.
A judge said that Dallas-based Daystar Television Network can go ahead with its suit against Coast Community College District, which sold Huntington Beach-based KOCE-TV to the public station’s foundation two years ago. Daystar, which also bid for the station, alleges religious discrimination in the sale.
San Clemente-based Sunstone Hotel Investors Inc. said it plans to buy the 335-room Embassy Suites in La Jolla for about $100 million. The company also said its first-quarter revenue grew 85% to $212 million, versus a year earlier. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization rose 78% to $52 million Irvine-based Autobytel Inc. said Mike Schmidt is stepping down as chief financial officer to pursue other opportunities. Schmidt took over as finance chief a year ago. The online auto marketer has hired a recruiting firm to help look for a replacement Anaheim-based teen clothes retailer Pacific Sunwear of California Inc. reversed a slump with a better-than-expected 14% rise in April sales at stores open at least a year. Pacific Sunwear easily beat Wall Street expectations of 5% growth in the period. Foothill Ranch-based Wet Seal Inc., the other major retailer based in the county, reported a 17% gain in April same-store sales, marking slower growth than the rebounding girls chain has seen in the past year. Wet Seal, which runs The Wet Seal chain for girls and Arden B for women, came in below Wall Street expectations of 19.5% growth.
