TOP STORY
Huntington Beach-based Quiksilver Inc. said it got a two month reprieve on a $70 million European line of credit based on what could be the pending sale of its DC Shoes brand. The announcement came as part of Quiksilver’s results for the three months through January, in which the clothing maker reported a drop in sales and a loss that were better than what Wall Street expected. Executives couldn’t comment on the potential DC Shoes sale. Analysts widely expect Quiksilver to sell the brand to raise money to meet $316 million in debt coming due this year and in 2010. The company also hired boutique investment bank Peter J. Solomon & Co. to help raise money or to find an investor in the struggling clothing maker.
TECHNOLOGY
Kingston Technology Co., the Fountain Valley-based maker of memory products for computers and consumer electronics, saw a decline in yearly sales last year for the first time in half a decade, citing a weak economy and dip in memory chip prices. 2008 revenue was $4 billion, down 11% from $4.5 billion in 2007. Kingston doesn’t disclose profits or any other financial details.
Aliso Viejo’s Quest Software Inc., a maker of business software, is set to buy back some of its shares for the second time in a few months. The company’s board gave the green light to buy $100 million worth of shares. In December, Quest paid $143 million for roughly 11% of its outstanding shares. The company had $260.4 million in cash and equivalents as of Dec. 31. In other Quest news, the company settled a Securities and Exchange Commission lawsuit over backdated stock options with Chairman Vinny Smith and a current and former executive paying $300,000 in fines, without admitting or denying wrongdoing.
South Korean regulators charged Qualcomm Inc. with unfair trade practices in a case related to the San Diego-based chipmaker’s long running dispute with Irvine’s Broadcom Corp. in the market for cell phone chips. The Korean Fair Trade Commission made the allegations about the legality of Qualcom’s business practices, including rebates and discounts for its customers, after complaints from four companies, including Broadcom. South Korea is home to Samsung Electronics Co. and LG Electronics Inc., two of the largest cell phone makers.
Santa Ana-based MSC.Software Corp., a maker of industrial simulation software, named Ashfaq Munshi as interim leader after chief executive and chairman Bill Weyand and chief operating officer Glenn Weinkoop stepped down. The company, whose shares are off about 60% in the past 12 months with a recent market value of $220 million, didn’t say why the two resigned. MSC.Software said it hired a search firm to find a permanent chief executive.
HEALTHCARE
Tenet Healthcare Corp., the Dallas-based owner of three Orange County hospitals, agreed to pay $85 million to settle claims that nurses and other employees were denied extra pay after a change in California law entitled them to overtime. The suit was brought by Don Pagaduan, a respiratory therapist from Mission Viejo, who worked at Fountain Valley Regional Hospital when the law took effect in 2000.
REAL ESTATE
Anaheim-based mall retailer Pacific Sunwear of California Inc. reported a better-than-expected adjusted loss of $30.9 million for the three months through January and said it projects a loss for the current quarter of $17 million, in line with Wall Street expectations.
APPAREL
CommerceWest Bank in Irvine is acquiring Discovery Bancorp in San Marcos in a stock deal worth about $11 million. CommerceWest Bank, with branches in Irvine, Newport Beach, Gardena and Corona, has $255 million in assets. Discovery Bank, with branches in San Marcos, Poway and Los Angeles, has assets of $171 million. The deal is expected to be completed during the second or third quarter.
Los Angeles-based insurer Mercury General Corp. laid off 363 people companywide, with the majority reportedly at its Orange County office in Brea. A company spokesman declined to say how many jobs were affected here, but one of the employees who was laid off said it was “more than 300” and cut across all departments. Mercury employed 700 people in Brea.
OTHER NEWS
An investment firm backed by Roy Disney is urging directors of Santa Ana-based Collectors Universe Inc. to put the collectibles authenticator up for sale. In a letter to Collectors Chairman Clinton Allen, Burbank-based Shamrock Capital Advisors Inc. said it believes the company could be worth twice as much if it were put up for sale. Shamrock said it believes Collectors “is an attractive acquisition candidate” and directors should abandon the company’s “flawed strategic direction.”
Viken Keuylian, one of the owners of Lamborghini Orange County, has agreed to plead guilty to charges of wire fraud related to the finance arm of Volkswagan AG, owner of the Italian sports car maker. Federal prosecutors allege Keuylian deceived Volkswagen Credit Inc. by misusing $12 million in financing from the company to buy luxury cars and not paying the loans back when they sold. Keuylian’s plea deal is set to go before a judge this week.
