EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Compiled by Mike Mason
TOP STORIES
Irvine-based Fidelity National Financial Inc. said it’s moving ahead with a plan to move its headquarters to Jacksonville, Fla. The title insurer said it’s been offered $12.5 million in incentives from Florida officials and is awaiting approval from Jacksonville’s City Council. Just a handful of the company’s 500 OC workers will move, while all 450 people at Fidelity National’s Santa Barbara operations will relocate to Florida … Meanwhile, Fidelity National said it bought St. Louis-based financial software maker Hamilton & Sullivan Ltd. for undisclosed terms … And two lawsuits seeking class action status were filed against eight title insurance companies for alleged price fixing. Fidelity National and Santa Ana-based First American Corp. were among those charged.
TECHNOLOGY
Newport Beach-based Conexant Systems Inc. said it plans to buy the soft-modem business of Chicago-based PCTel Inc. for up to $19 million depending on royalties in the next four years. Conexant gets 30 PCTel workers and operations in Milpitas and Taiwan. The acquisition settles patent infringement issues between the companies, with PCTel acquiring 20 Conexant patents … Santa Ana-based Ingram Micro Inc. said it plans to change its worker incentive plan because it doesn’t meet the investment guidelines of FMR Corp.’s Fidelity Investments, which owns 4% of the company’s shares. Ingram also confirmed sales and profit guidance for the quarter … Executives at Lake Forest-based Western Digital Corp. sold $8.5 million worth of shares in April. Arif Shakeel, chief operating officer, sold the most,400,000 shares at $9.29 to $9.35. Chief Executive Matt Massengill, second with 285,500 shares, sold at $9.28 to $9.31 … Irvine-based Rainbow Technologies Inc. said it bought Brazil’s security software maker Proteq Ltda. for an undisclosed amount.
HEALTHCARE
Costa Mesa-based ICN Pharmaceuticals Inc. said its first-quarter operating income fell 50% to $32.4 million, vs. a year earlier, on a 14% decline in sales to $158.7 million. ICN cited lower royalty revenue from sales of its ribavirin drug by Schering-Plough Corp. for part of the sales decline … Irvine-based Interpore International Inc. filed a patent infringement suit against a unit of Minneapolis-based Medtronic Inc. Interpore said Medtronic’s spinal implant device violates three of its patents … Garden Grove-based Hycor Biomedical Inc. won approval from the Food and Drug Administration to sell its Anti-Cardiolipin autoimmune test … Irvine-based Corvel Corp. said its profit before taxes in the quarter ended March 31 rose 11% to $6.9 million, vs. a year earlier, on a 22% rise in revenue to $74 million.
REAL ESTATE
OC supervisors OK’d a deal to split property taxes from development at the former El Toro Marine base. The county gets 82% of tax revenue, with Irvine taking 18% … Irvine-based California Coastal Communities Inc. said its first-quarter loss before taxes widened to $800,000, vs. a loss of $300,000 a year ago. The homebuilder, whose main asset is the Bolsa Chica wetlands and mesa near Huntington Beach, said revenue rose 26% to $3.9 million.
FINANCE
Irvine-based Consumer Portfolio Services Inc. said it swung to first-quarter income before taxes of $2.4 million, vs. a loss of $6.8 million a year ago, on a 72% increase in revenue to $22.5 million.
GOVERNMENT
The Orange County Water District filed a lawsuit against 18 oil companies that allegedly leaked fuel additive MTBE into county underground drinking water supplies. The district said it could cost millions to decontaminate the water supply … Irvine property owners voted to back an annual $49 tax to help plug Irvine Unified School District’s budget shortfall. The money would be used to pay for school upkeep. Taxpayer groups say they’ll challenge the vote.
WHAT ELSE IS NEWS
Boeing Co.’s Huntington Beach-based rocket operations are under investigation by the Justice Department over whether it illegally used information from competitor Lockheed Martin Corp. to win a spy satellite contract in 1997. Boeing could be suspended from winning some government work if found guilty. Meanwhile, Boeing said it’s moving 140 space shuttle workers from Huntington Beach to operations near the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Johnson Space Center in Houston and the Kennedy Space Center in Florida … Costa Mesa-based “Saturday Night Special” gun maker Bryco Arms Inc. was found partly responsible for injuries to a boy who was left a quadriplegic when his babysitter accidentally shot him in 1994 while unloading a .38 caliber handgun made by Bryco. A jury awarded $50.9 million to the boy, with Bryco found at least one-third responsible. A pawn shop and the babysitter also were held responsible … Irvine-based In-N-Out Burgers settled a lawsuit for undisclosed terms with the family of a girl who said she was infected with the E. coli bacteria after eating a hamburger at an In-N-Out restaurant in the Bakersfield area. The girl suffered kidney damage … Anaheim-based retailer Pacific Sunwear of California Inc. said same-store sales in April jumped 16.9%. Overall sales were up 26% to $60.4 million … Foothill Ranch-based Wet Seal Inc. said its same-store sales fell 16.9% in April … Irvine-based Ocean Pacific Apparel Corp. signed a licensing deal with Crown Crafts Infant Products Inc. to develop an Op-branded line of bath towels, bibs and crib bedding … Irvine-based Hines Horticulture Inc. said its first-quarter operating profit sunk 53% to $4.8 million, vs. a year ago, on a 15% decline in sales to $58.5 million. The company cited a slow retail environment … Irvine-based The Keith Cos. said first-quarter profit before taxes fell 9% to $2.3 million, vs. a year earlier, on a 7% gain in sales to $22.3 million … Aliso Viejo-based RemedyTemp Inc. opened a financial staffing office in King of Prussia, Pa.
