Compiled by Mike Mason
Jim Jannard, the colorful founder of Oakley Inc., is stepping down as chief executive on Oct. 10. The Foothill Ranch-based sunglasses maker said Jannard, who started Oakley in 1975, will continue as chairman of the company. Scott Olivet was named to take over as Oakley’s chief executive. He also was named a director. Olivet has worked for Nike Inc. as vice president, Nike subsidiaries and new business development, since 2001. He headed Nike units including Cole Haan, Converse, Hurley, Starter and Bauer-Nike Hockey Irvine-based New Century Financial Corp. warned that its 2005 profit would fall short of expectations. The culprit: higher interest rates and housing market concerns. The real estate investment trust said it was cutting its earnings forecast by about 13% to a range of $408 million to $437 million, based on 56.4 million shares outstanding. New Century, which loans to borrowers with less-than-perfect credit, has seen its shares fall 44% this year.
Huntington Beach-based MenuLink Computer Solutions Inc., a software maker for restaurants and others, is being bought by Atlanta’s Radiant Systems Inc. for undisclosed terms. The buy is set to close in the fourth quarter and add to Radiant’s earnings next year. MenuLink makes software used to run restaurants, including Taco Bell, Del Taco, Burger King, El Pollo Loco and Johnny Rockets.
Federal regulators signed off on PacifiCare Health Systems Inc.’s plans to market a Medicare drug plan to seniors as part of the government’s effort to insure seniors’ prescriptions. Shares of PacifiCare were up 2% on the news in an otherwise down day on Wall Street. PacifiCare said last week the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services OK’d its Medicare drug plans for marketing in all 50 states. The company plans to offer three different plans that would take effect Jan. 1 … Spectrum Pharmaceuticals Inc., Irvine, said that it raised $42 million in a sale of 8 million shares at $5.25 each. The cancer drug developer said “leading biotech institutional investors” bought the shares. Rodman and Renshaw LLC, a New York investment bank, managed the stock sale. Investors also received six-year warrants to buy up to 4 million shares of its common stock at an exercise price of $6.62 a share Costa Mesa-based Valeant Pharmaceuticals International said the Food and Drug Administration approved its Diastat AcuDial gel, which is used to treat emergency seizures at home. The company expects to sell the treatment in pharmacies early next month Irvine-based Edwards Lifesciences Corp. said it started selling its Carpentier-Edwards Perimount Magna heart valve in Europe. Edwards hopes to begin sales of the valve in the U.S. next year Lake Forest-based InSight Health Services Corp. wrapped up a $300 million loan refinancing. The privately held medical imaging service provider said it is using the proceeds of the debt offering to pay off existing debt.
The National Infrastructure Capital Group has offered to loan the Transportation Corridor Agencies $400 million to prevent a default on $1.9 billion in bonds used to build the San Joaquin Hills (73) Toll Road. The investor group is headed by Lodwrick Cook, former co-chairman of Global Crossing Ltd. The loan would call for raising the tolls on the 73. Macquarie Infrastructure Group has made a separate bid to take the struggling toll road private State Sen. John Campbell was endorsed by the Republican Party’s California and OC groups in the Oct. 4 primary election to replace Chris Cox, who was tapped by President Bush to head the Securities and Exchange Commission. Democrat groups are backing Irvine lawyer Steve Young.
Aliso Viejo-based Fluor Corp. said it and a team of subcontractors won an $860 million contract from the U.K. Highways Agency to modernize England’s highway system with new telecommunications systems and gear. The engineering and construction company’s portion of the 10.5-year contract, called the “National Roads Telecommunications Services” project, is $524 million and is set to be booked in the company’s third quarter … Federated Department Stores Inc. said it would replace its Robinsons-May location at South Coast Plaza with a Bloomingdale’s. The Robinsons-May is set to be closed next year Anaheim-based Pacific Sunwear of California Inc. backed its quarterly earnings outlook amid Wall Street fears about September sales. Pacific Sunwear, which runs PacSun surfwear stores and the d.e.m.o. chain selling urban fashions, said troubles at d.e.m.o. won’t derail growth. The company said it is sticking with an earlier forecast of 15% to 20% profit growth in the current quarter from a year ago, when it earned $107 million profit on sales of $1.2 billion Ana Limbaring was charged with stealing $1 million from the Orange County Performing Arts Center, where she worked in the accounting department for the past 10 years. Limbaring allegedly took the money during the past five years Santa Ana-based Corinthian Colleges Inc. said it plans to sell its corporate training unit in Canada for about $16 million. Halifax, Nova Scotia-based CrossOff Inc. said it plans to buy Corinthian’s CDI Education unit and combine it with its Polar Bear Corporate Education Solutions division Advertising shop Foote Cone & Belding Inc. is cutting 20 people from its Irvine operation and putting it under its San Francisco office, according to trade publication Adweek. The local operation is set to become a service office for main client Taco Bell Corp., an Irvine-based unit of Yum! Brands Inc. The 20 layoffs are about a third of Foote Cone & Belding’s local workforce, according to Adweek.
