OCBJ WEEKLY LISTS
Rising Rates Take Bite Out of Title Cos.’ 2017 Work
Commercial, Homebuying Business Pick up Refi Slack
The country’s biggest title insurers are striking optimistic notes on the health of their industry, despite the expectation of additional interest rate hikes, which have already put a crimp on refinance business.
Condo Surge Lifts New-Home Sales to 15-Year High
4 Master-Planned Areas See Two-Thirds of Action
New-home sales reached a 15-year high in Orange County last year, thanks to a surge in condominium and attached-home sales and continued development at the area’s four largest master-planned communities.
A Record-Setting Year for Transformative Gifts
Big Giving Up And Unprecedented in 2017
This is the Business Journal’s first ranking of largest charitable gifts. Was an easy inspiration. The Susan and Henry Samueli gift to the University of California-Irvine, the Fowlers’ and Kecks’ to Chapman University, the Argyros’ to Segerstrom Center (and others) were front-page stories, in some cases record in scope, even on a national level.
Banks Increase OC Deposits 9%, Cut Jobs
FINANCE: BofA, JPMorgan outgrow top-3 rival Wells Fargo
Banks operating in Orange County are attracting more deposits with fewer employees and branches, based on the Business Journal’s annual list.
Top Care Providers Experience Exec-Level Change
UCI to Fill Two Positions; Providence Taps New Head
High performers like UC Irvine Medical Center and Providence St. Joseph Health—its local network comprised of seven hospitals—experienced changes on the executive level in the year ended Sept. 30, the former in search of a new chief executive, the latter naming a regional head to oversee Los Angeles, Orange and San Bernardino counties.
Environmental Consultants Grow, Seek Balance
Solitary Work Connects Care, Corporate Concerns
They say there’s balance in nature.
Revenue, Hiring Flat at Minority-Owned Businesses
Activity Level Belies Slow-Growth Numbers
2017 revenue and hiring at Orange County-based minority-owned businesses showed little change from 2016, according to Business Journal research—including slight declines at companies such as No. 3, Alorica in Irvine, and No. 7, New American Funding.
Employment Agencies Repair Flat and Grow
Growing Economy and Wage Boosts Lifted 2017 Placings
2017 was a better year for the Orange County operations of employment agencies. The placement firms saw growth across nearly all metrics, from annual revenue to number of temporary and permanent workers landing jobs with clients.
Little Change in Meeting Space Last Year, Lots in Focus
Events Digs Make Splash as SF Up 2.1%
Meeting space is what the community of business is, at least for the 52 hotels on this week’s list.
Autos Lead Modest Pace of Jobs Growth
Top Foreign-Owned Cos. Still Show Some OC ‘Braun’
Orange County’s automakers helped drive a modest uptick in employment last year among the largest foreign-owned companies with major operations here.
Wanted: Best Places to Work for OCBJ’s List
CALL FOR ENTRIES: Website to take entries through March 16
Is your workplace great?
OC’s Nonprofits Increase Revenue 7.2%
Donors Boost Giving To Assist Homeless
The issue of rising homelessness was one of the keys to a 7.2% boost in revenue among nonprofit organizations in Orange County.
Local Employers Edge Up Worker Count to 289,000
List Adds Bigger Players, County Workers in 2017
Orange County’s largest employers added about 2,300 jobs over the previous 12 months for modest growth of 1%.
Streak Ends for OC Malls
Ownership, Executive, Plan Changes in Group of 35
A seven-year growth streak has ended for Orange County’s largest shopping centers.
OC Auto Dealers See Sales Decelerate
Karma Now Biggest OC Automaker Employer
The 39 largest auto dealers in Orange County combined for $5.16 billion in sales for the 12-month period that ended June 30, a 1.4% increase that marks the second straight year of a significant slowdown from recent years, according to this week’s Business Journal list.
OC-Based Banks’ Growth in Assets Slows Down
14% Increase Doesn’t Compare to Prior Years
Orange County-based commercial banks boosted assets a normally admirable 14% to $36 billion in the 12 months ended June 30.
Credit Unions Boom Again With 10% Asset Growth
Increase Tops 10% For First Time in Decade
Orange County’s credit unions are back to growing assets by double-digit percentages.
On the OC Fast Track
Fastest-Growing Cos. Use Buys to Bump Sales 44%
Orange County’s fastest growing publicly traded companies increased revenue by $16 billion in a two-year span.
50 Honorees, 5 Awards in 1st Civic 50 Orange County
‘Corporate Philanthropy Is in a Renaissance’
The list in this Special Report is unusual for the Business Journal in two ways. It’s a first—the first list of local-market Civic 50 honorees in the country. And it’s likely a first Business Journal list without financials. Rightly so.
Aerospace and Defense Reverse Job Slide in ‘17
M&A, Growing Business Lines Highlight Sector
Two big takeovers and a headquarters move to Orange County shook up the local landscape for the largest aerospace and defense contractors with operations here.
Total SoCal MBA Enrollees Down Slightly
Competition for Students Results in Fewer Applications
Southern California schools with MBA programs showed a slight decrease in the number of Southern California enrollees, down about 2% from a year ago, based on the Business Journal’s annual survey. The number of enrollees dropped from 12,418 in September 2016 to 12,171 last month. It was a smaller drop than that reflected on last year’s list, when there was an approximate 6% change from September 2015 to September 2016.
Insurance Brokers Average 7.8% Rise in OC Revenue
25 Firms Report Strong Growth for Fifth Year
Orange County’s largest insurance brokerages continued solid growth as local revenue climbed above 7% for the fifth straight year.
Architecture Firms Finding Work Outside of OC
Firmwide Billings Climb At Faster Pace than Local
Orange County’s architecture firms reported they’re growing their business faster outside the county.
Engineering Firms’ Local Billings Increase 6.2%
AECOM, Arcadis, Jacobs Experience Good Years
Orange County’s top engineering firms reported a 6.2% rise in OC billings to $1.6 billion.
Private Cos. Grow 2-Year Sales 90%, Top $19B
This Year’s Ranks Led by the ‘Big As’ Grew Jobs 30%
In life, in lists, it’s rough to do apples-to-apples comparisons. In culling our weekly lists of every business silo and subsilo, of firms of all ownership forms and makeups, we have several goals: to compile as comprehensive and accurate a roster as possible; to produce features on the best and the brazen; and to analyze beyond a comparison of numbers. As an editor wrote one sentence ago, “It’s very difficult to do apples-to-apples comparisons.”
Medical Device Makers Grow Employment 8.1%
HEALTHCARE: 39 biggest add over 1,500 workers in strong sector
Medical device makers with operations in Orange County added 1,560 employees over the 12 months ended July 30, for a growth rate of 8.1%, according to Business Journal research.
OC-Based Drugmakers Increase Employment 3%
Allergan Still No. 1; Dendreon Joins List
The biggest drugmakers with headquarters or significant operations in Orange County employed 2,861 here at the close of the year ended July 30, up nearly 3% from a year earlier.
New Rankings Based on OC Charitable Giving
Argyros Tops Privates, Wells Fargo Corporate
For this year’s philanthropy lists, the Business Journal ranked both corporate and private foundations by the amounts they gave to Orange County charities, instead of by total giving. The criteria include that the foundation is either headquartered here in OC, focuses a significant amount of its giving on OC charities, or that a principal lives here. Giving, in and of itself, can be volatile and fluctuate from year to year.
OC’s Top Software Firms Added Jobs, Grew Ranks
Six List Newcomers in Hot Spaces: AI, Gaming
A mix of new and established companies helped Orange County post solid job growth in the software sector for the second consecutive year.
City of Irvine’s Got Speed And Hits for Power
Anaheim Leads Cities Roster
Imagine Angels outfielder Mike Trout on an exceptional day—the final score could read “Trout 7, White Sox 2,” —and you get an idea of Irvine compared to its city-mates in Orange County.
T-Mobile Leads Telecom Job Gains Amid ‘Disruption’
TECHNOLOGY: Mobilitie grows on 5G buildout
Employment in Orange County’s telecommunications sector was buoyed by strong gains from the local operation of T-Mobile USA Inc. for the second consecutive year.
OC’s PR Shops Grew in Past Year
Social Media, Digital Storytelling in Toolset
The role of public relations professionals is changing—even the president is tweeting daily, bypassing the media.
Not Standing Still
How OC’s Wealthiest Grew Firms and Fortunes
Orange County’s wealthiest people enjoyed a good year. Most on our 2017 list, see page 16 of stand-alone Special Report, grew their fortunes, some substantially. The roster grew by two, nearly 5% from 45 to 47. The Business Journal’s “cutoff” is $250 million.
Best Places to Work Give Employees More Than Pay
100 That Came Out on Top Offer Perks, Extra Dough
Looking for a job with an unlimited number of vacation days? Check in with DKN Hotels in Irvine.
Tenant-Improvement Contractors ‘Crazy Busy’ in OC
33 Firms Pass $1 Billion In Sales With 19% Jump
Orange County’s tenant contractor industry is “crazy busy,” according to David Smith, president at Smith and Severson Builders of Lake Forest.
Fastest-Growing Private Companies Wanted for Business Journal’s Annual List
ECONOMY: Centerpiece of Sept. 18 Special Report
Is your company growing fast?
Accounting Firms Grow Again on ‘Positive Trends’
6th Consecutive Rise In Employees 2% Bump
Orange County’s largest accounting firms increased their employee counts 2.3%, the sixth consecutive year of gains.
Consulting Firms Report 2.2% Rise in Headcount
List Adds Consultants From Accounting Firms
Orange County’s top management consulting firms reported a 2.2% bump in consultants to 1,924 in the year ended June 30, based on research for the Business Journal’s annual list.
Largest Women-Owned Firms Made Gains in 2016
10-Year Trend in OC Keeps Pace With U.S.
Revenue generated by Orange County’s largest women-owned businesses grew about 35% since the recession and is on par with the national growth for the same time period.
Our 2017 Restaurant List Looks Healthy
38 OC-based chains grow, split, buck trends; sales up 7%
OC-based restaurant chains are seeing such life that a few split from our list for a new chart.
Three Amigos
PacLife, Kingston, Golden State Foods Lead Private Cos. List—Again
They say it’s lonely at the top, but if you invite a few friends it can get downright clubby.
New Hotels, Retail Drive Commercial Development
Plenty Under Way, Less Finished Than Prior Year
Orange County’s top commercial real estate developers kept busy last year with a host of retail, hotel and office projects, although the number of buildings nearing the finish line was smaller than the previous few years.
Local Construction Cos. Post Best Year Since 2009
Employment Totals Now Top Prerecession Levels
Orange County’s largest commercial construction companies showed no signs of a slowdown in activity last year as a variety of large private and public-sector projects helped push revenues to a post-recession high.
Financial Advisers Boost Representatives by 2.7%
OC Advisers Have Climbed 25% Since 2010
The combined pool of financial advisers in Orange County grew about 2.7% to 2,022 last year, led by increases at Merrill Lynch, Fidelity Investments and Raymond James Financial Services Inc.
Top VC Firms Invest 47% More in Local Companies
43 OC Deals for $78M Up From 30 for $53M in 2015
Venture capital firms based in Orange County increased their local investments 47% last year, led by Toba Capital and Okapi Venture Capital.
Area Hospitality Steady in Rooms, Trends, Money
List Hotels Have Few, But Key Room Modifications
Waterfront Beach Resort, A Hilton Hotel shuttered six of its 290 rooms last year, but it had a very good reason—the move helped make way for about 150 more in a new tower that’s scheduled to open in September.
Women-Owned Businesses Wanted for Annual List
Special Report: Focus of July 3 edition
Is your company women-owned? The Business Journal wants to hear from you.
Apparel Makers’ OC Employment Drops 5% to 8,593
54 Biggest Firms Include Four Newcomers
Orange County’s largest apparel makers slowed hiring over the past year.
Consumer Electronics Makers’ Employment Flat
18 Biggest Marketers, Makers Employ 4,618
A headquarters move and an axed sale were the big headlines generated recently by Orange County’s largest consumer electronics makers as employment held steady.
Chipmakers’ Employment Flat After Deep 2016 Cuts
Biggest Combine to Trim 15, Leaving 3,947 in OC
Orange County’s biggest chipmakers in the 10 months through the end of April staved off deep job cuts that have defined the sector following Broadcom Corp.’s $37 billion sale to Singapore-based Avago Technologies Inc. last February.
SBA Loan Value Soars 40% at 30 Largest Lenders
Number of Loans Grows At Slower, 2% Pace
Small Business Administration lending in Orange County grew at a torrid 40% pace in a recent six-month period while the number of loans climbed at a slower 2.4% pace, based on two lists published in this week’s Business Journal.
Wanted: Most Community-Minded Companies for New OCBJ List
Is your company about much more than its bottom line? Does it also use its resources to better the Orange County community?
Employment Agency Numbers Reflect Hot Job Market
Temp Down, Direct-Hire Up, For Firms That Tell
Orange County’s job market produced some apparent anomalies in the placement of temporary and permanent workers last year.
Ad Agencies Post 2nd Straight Year of Double-Digit Gains
Two Firms Have 56% of List’s $1.5 Billion in Revenue
Let’s see that clip again.
Commercial Printers Hold the Line on 2016 Sales
29 Biggest Take in $621M Through 110 OC Presses
Orange County’s 29 largest commercial printers combined for $621 million in sales last year, about the same as the group posted in 2015.
Bull Market for Public Cos.
Capitalizations Rise, IPOs Return, for OC’s Top 100
It was another year of change for Orange County-based public companies.
Private Companies Wanted for Annual List
The Business Journal is preparing its annual list of privately owned companies for publication in June.
Brisk Sales Boost Bottom Line of CRE Brokerages
Volume Rises 8%; Lease Deals Down 3%
A brisk pace of building, apartment and land sales helped overcome some sluggish leasing activity in Orange County last year. The bottom line: another year of gains for the area’s largest commercial brokerages.
Development Buoys OC Property Managers’ Books
Top Firms’ Local Accounts Approach 200 Million SF
A dose of development helped Orange County’s largest commercial property managers grow their local portfolios for the fifth straight year.
6% Bump in Local Billings for Environmental Firms
Uptick Reverses Last Year’s Slight Decline
Orange County’s largest environmental consultants, as ranked by local billings, experienced an increase last year in those numbers after a small decrease in 2015.
Firms Hold Back on Attorney Hires for Second Year
Numbers Again Flat After Modest Post-Recovery Gains
Law firms in Orange County held attorney counts steady over the past year for the second year in a row after two years of modest gains.
Title Insurers Seek More Buys in Face of Rate Hikes
Brokerage Business, Data Firms on Shopping List
Orange County’s largest title insurance providers are looking at acquisitions both inside and outside their core business lines to help them grow operations and improve efficiencies in a climate of interest rate hikes likely to cut into their refinancing work.
Bank Deposits Increase 13% to $109.6 Billion
Top Three Unchanged, Represent 37% of Growth
Banks in Orange County enjoyed another banner year as deposits climbed 13% to $109.6 billion for the year ended June 30, up 60% over five years earlier.
Lake Forest Homebuilding Steps Out of Shadows
Ongoing Projects, Pipeline Add Slew of New Homes
Lake Forest, despite being in the shadow of California’s two best-selling master-planned communities, has been holding its own during the latest residential building boom.
Top-Ranked Hospitals Combine for 2% Revenue Jump
30 Centers Take in $7.2B; UCI Hospital Still at Top
Last year Renton, Wash.-based Providence Health & Services and Irvine-based St. Joseph Health merged to form a seven-state healthcare system, a transaction that further consolidated its Orange County-based hospitals under the umbrella of St. Joseph Hoag Health.
Minority-Owned Firms’ Revenue Up 10% in 2016
78 Combine for $18.7B, Employ Nearly 14K in OC
Revenue at the largest minority-owned businesses with headquarters in Orange County climbed almost 10% to $18.7 billion last year, led by acquisitions, mortgages and granite countertops.
OC Hotels See Rare Increase in Meetings Space With 2 New Entrants
Paséa, Great Wolf Drive Climb to Over 1.3M SF
Two hotels that opened last year in Orange County added 55,000 square feet of meeting space to local inventory, enough to drive the Business Journal’s annual account of hotel meeting space above 1.3 million square feet.
China-Based Companies Among Biggest of OC’s Foreign Employers
ECONOMY: First entries reflect growing commercial presence here
China’s continued expansion on the world stage and a strong year for hiring among Orange County’s largest foreign-owned companies combined to bring a jump in overall employment in the category here.
Nonprofit Revenue up 3%, Client Base Rises 2%
Volunteers Increase 10%, Staff Up 4% at 93 Groups
Orange County’s nonprofit organizations continued to grow revenue in the past year as more OC residents requested their services.
Biggest Employers Get Bigger
Grow Local Workforces 2.5% to 273,000, Up 3.5% Companywide
Orange County’s biggest employers continued to expand their workforces over the past year, though at a slightly slower pace than last year.
OC Retail Keeps Streak
Biggest Shopping Centers Post 1.7% Increase, Top $8B in Sales
The largest shopping centers in Orange County managed a seventh straight year of growth in taxable sales with a 1.7% gain.
Downshift on Sales Gains for Auto Dealers
AUTOS: 1.5% hike for biggest; Karma top automaker for jobs
The 40 largest auto dealers in Orange County combined for $5.3 billion in sales for the 12-month period that ended June 30, a 1.5% increase that marks a significant slowdown from recent years, according to this week’s Business Journal list.
Commercial Banks Grow Assets 39% to $34 Billion
Top Five Unchanged; Profits Up 31% to $138M
Orange County-based commercial banks continued strong year-over-year growth as they increased assets 39% to about $33.5 billion for the year ended June 30.
Credit Unions Grow Assets 8% to $19.4 Billion
Struggle on Profits, With 1% Dip to $73 Million
It’s been a mixed year for Orange County’s credit unions as they grew assets by about 7.8% to $19.4 billion for the year ended June 30 while combining for a 1.3% decline in net income to about $73.4 million for the first six months of 2016.
Escalating Expansion
Fastest-Growing Public Companies Combine to Hike Revenue 75% to $25 Billion
The 47 fastest-growing public companies in Orange County are growing faster.
Financial Advisories Add 200 Local Reps, Up 12%
64% of Advisers at Top 5; 4 Firms Debut on List
The combined pool of registered investment advisers in Orange County grew about 12% to 1,905, and the 29 firms on the Business Journal’s list combined to employ overall staffs totaling 7,022, up 16.5%.
Aerospace & Defense Contractors Lose Altitude on Jobs
Slight Decline 2nd in Row For Biggest With Operations Here
Orange County’s largest aerospace and defense contractors posted a modest drop in local employment in the past year.
OC MBA Enrollment Up 25%, Number of Grads Down
Online Schools Lead List Of 41 SoCal Programs
Numbers are up in the Business Journal’s annual survey of MBA programs in Orange County. The Business Journal publishes an unranked list of 41 MBA programs throughout Southern California (see related graphic, page 25).
Insurance Brokers Grow Revenue 7% to $624 Million
Biggest Rise Fastest, Account 75% of Total
Orange County’s insurance brokerages grew for a sixth straight year to combine for about a 7% increase in local revenue to $623.6 million in 2015.
Architecture Firms’ Local Work Grows 4% to $451M
Renovations Up for Office, School, Retailer Clients
Orange County’s architecture firms combined for about $451.1 million in local billings in the past year, up about 4%. Firmwide billings dropped 11% based on numbers reported by half of the firms.
Engineering Firms’ Local Billings Up 7% to $1.45B
OC Market Defies US Slide on Oil Price Decline
Orange County’s top engineering firms had a mixed year with an increase in local billings as companywide revenue dipped.
Fastest Growers Top $15 Billion
Employment Up 16% to Nearly 21,000 Jobs
The 157 fastest-growing private companies in Orange County combined to boost revenue by more than 66% over the last two years to an estimated $15.4 billion.
About Our Annual Fastest- Growing Private Companies List
The Business Journal’s annual list of fastest-growing private companies includes OC-based businesses owned by individuals, groups of people, families, venture capitalists, private-equity firms and other investors.
Employment Up at Biggest Medical Device Makers
Local Public Companies Lead; Net Gain of 970 Workers
Medical device makers with operations in Orange County added nearly 1,000 employees over the past 12 months for a growth rate of nearly 6%, according to Business Journal research.
Biggest Drugmakers Hold Steady on OC Jobs
Allergan Still No. 1 for Local Employment
The largest drugmakers with headquarters or significant operations in Orange County employed 3,210 here during the 12-month period that ended Aug. 30, about the same as a year earlier.
Private Foundations Boost Overall Giving By 23%
Combine to Donate $180M, Increase Local Gifts 46%
Orange County’s private foundations gave more locally and overall in their most recent fiscal years.
Corporate Foundations Boost Giving 1.4% to $1.3B
OC Contributions Up 5% To Nearly $20 Million
Corporate foundations active in Orange County continued what’s now a six-year trend of increasing overall cash contributions to OC charities.
Chipmakers, led by Broadcom, Cut OC Work Force 16%
17 Biggest Down 756 Jobs To Just Under 4K Workers
Big job cuts at Broadcom Ltd. following its $37 billion sale in February to Singapore-based Avago Technologies Inc. and a string of divestitures fueled one of the steepest local employment drops in the chip sector in years.
PR Firms Up Staffing 14%, Outpacing US Estimate
The Brand Amp Stays Atop List With 21% Increase
The majority of the biggest public relations firms in Orange County increased their staffing levels during the 12 months ended July 31, combining to more than double the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ projected 6% pace of national industry growth.
Telecoms Reverse 2 Years of Job Cuts With 4% Gain
Led By T-Mobile, Which Added 175 Employees
The continued growth of T-Mobile USA Inc. and Mobilitie LLC’s local operations boosted the employment of the largest telecommunications companies in Orange County over the year ended July 31.
OC Cities’ Populations Inch Up Another 1% to 3M+
34 Incorporated Areas Still Topped By Anaheim
Orange County’s population expanded by about 29,000 people last year, or a hair under 1%, ending 2015 at slightly above 3 million.
HMO Membership Flat in OC, PPOs Post 12% Rise
Growth on Hold As Planned M&As Scrutinized
Orange County’s top eight health maintenance organizations grew slowly during the 12 months through July.
Dental Care Plans’ Growth Stagnates Following Spike
Membership Flat at 13 Biggest To 2.6 Million
Membership at managed dental healthcare plans operating in Orange County slightly declined over the year ended last month after a surge in 2015.
Big Wheels, Big Deals
How OC’s Wealthiest Got Much Wealthier
This year’s crop of OC’s richest residents managed to outpace the market by a longshot, thanks to a number of additions and several deals that helped boost the combined wealth of the 45 entries to $72.5 billion.
Tenant-Improvement Work Tops $900 Million Here
30 Firms Do $909M In Work, Grow Revenue 16%
Orange County’s 30 largest tenant-improvement contractors continued to grow last year, combining for $909 million in local work.
Accounting Firms Expand for Fifth Consecutive Year
Boost Employment By 6%, Big Four Again Lead Pack
Orange County’s largest accounting firms combined to grow the industry’s local work force by 6% over the year through June for the fifth consecutive year of gains as the economy and business regulation expanded.
Management Consultants Continue Growth in OC
Local Employment Up 9%, Firmwide Staff Rises 19%
Orange County’s top management consulting firms experienced 9% growth to employ about 1,760 locally in the year ended June 30, many of them adding staffers.
Women-Owned Firms Turn Revenue Hike Into Big Job Gains
ECONOMY: Largest up 20% overall, 9.2% on local hires
Orange County’s biggest women-owned businesses generated more than $3.75 billion in revenue last year, a 7% annual increase and the sixth consecutive year of growth.
Top Restaurant Chains Post 8% Gain, $16.4B in Sales
Big 5 Strengthen Positions; 8 Newcomers on List
Orange County-based restaurant chains continued to grow in the past year, reaching $16.4 billion in revenue, a hike of about 8% from a year ago.