Compiled by Alisha Gomez
TOP STORIES
Irvine medical device maker Masimo Corp.’s public offering debuted with a bang. The company’s shares closed up 20% on their first day of trading,one of the strongest debuts for a local public offering in the past few years. Masimo, which makes a device that measures a patient’s oxygen level, had a recent market value of about $1 billion. Irvine-based HireRight Inc., which does applicant background checks and drug screening for employers, also went public last week. It ended its first day down 2%. The offering raised about $65 million, including $45 million for HireRight, which had a recent market value of about $160 million.
TECHNOLOGY
The U.S. Trade Representative upheld a ban last week on cell phones that contain Qualcomm Inc.’s chips found to infringe on rival Broadcom Corp.’s patents. The ban, issued in June by the International Trade Commission, had been under review for two months by the White House, which could have vetoed it. The ITC, a trade watchdog, banned San Diego-based Qualcomm and phone makers from importing the contested chips. Also last week, Broadcom won a deal with Nokia Corp. to supply wireless chips for its phones.
Shares of Costa Mesa-based Emulex Corp., which makes host bus adapters that link computers on data networks, plunged after the company gave a weaker-than-expected outlook for the current quarter. For the September quarter, Emulex said it expects sales of $115 million to $118 million. Analysts are looking for $126 million. The company forecasts a profit of $20 million to $22 million. Wall Street expects about $25 million. The outlook overshadowed earnings for the quarter ended July 1. Emulex reported sales of about $126 million, up 28% from a year earlier and beating analysts’ estimates of $124 million. The company’s revenue got a boost from design wins with Sun Microsystems Inc. and IBM Corp. Emulex swung to a profit of about $13 million in the quarter, up from a loss of nearly $5 million a year ago. Analysts were looking for a profit of about $24 million.
REAL ESTATE
Newport Beach-based homebuilder William Lyon Homes Inc. reported a pre-tax loss of $77.8 million in the second quarter, compared to a profit of $50 million a year ago. The loss included $84.4 million in lower valuations for land the homebuilder owns. Deliveries of finished homes to buyers dropped 29% from a year earlier. Orders for homes by buyers fell 11%. The company posted revenue of $271 million in the quarter, which was down 34% from a year earlier. The homes it sold had an average price of $468,800 last quarter, compared to $529,500 a year ago.
Irvine-based Option One Mortgage Corp. is set to cut more jobs, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing by its parent H & R; Block. Option One last week said it is “committed to further staff reductions” by the end of this year. H & R; Block said sale of its mortgage unit to Cerberus Capital Management LP also might be delayed. Option One also might face additional restructuring, according to the filing.
GOVERNMENT
Craig Gunther, the former financial manager for Broadcom Corp. cofounder Henry “Nick” Nicholas was charged with trying to conceal large cash withdrawals from Nicholas’ bank account. A federal complaint accuses Gunther of withdrawing nearly $800,000 on 144 checks, each less than $10,000, from Nicholas’ account from early 2006 to early 2007. Federal law requires a cash transaction report for bank deposits and withdrawals exceeding $10,000 and prohibits people from structuring those transactions in smaller sums to evade reporting. Gunther, a lawyer from Laguna Hills, is free on a $5,000 bond. The 47-year-old is set to appear in court Sept. 10. From 2001 until June, Gunther was chief operating officer of the holding company that manages Nicholas’ estimated $2 billion wealth.
Treasurer-Tax Collector Chriss Street is being investigated by Justice Department for financial dealings while serving as a trustee of a trucking company’s pension fund. He’s also being criticized for spending nearly $1 million in remodeling the treasurer’s county offices.
OTHER NEWS
Irvine’s St. John Knits International Inc. hired Glenn McMahon, president of Dolce & Gabbana USA, as its chief executive. McMahon is set to start Sept. 1. St. John has been without a permanent chief executive for the past 16 months. Longtime executive Bruce Fetter was named interim chief earlier this year. Fetter is set to resume his prior roles of president and chief operating officer.
