Orange County’s 50 smaller public companies grew by leaps and bounds last year, expanding 23% to $1.16 billion in combined revenue.
The companies, which make up the second half of our annual list of the 125 largest public companies here, saw big revenue gains across the board. The list includes a number of fast-growing technology, drug, medical device and banking companies.
The first part of our list, ranking the top 75 companies based here, ran April 9. Revenue at the largest public companies was $96.3 billion, up 12% from a year ago.
This week’s list covers publicly traded companies ranked No. 76 to No. 125 based on sales for the most recently reported four quarters, most through December. Some companies don’t trade on major exchanges and haven’t reported results for all of 2006.
Profits still are elusive for the second group. Together they lost $200 million last year, about the same as in 2005.
Local employment at the companies rose 3% to 3,505 workers last year. Companywide employment rose 6% to 6,298 people.
The companies grew their assets by 10% to $3.8 billion in 2006.
Large gains at a few companies drove the higher revenue.
The top company, No. 76 Costa Mesa-based Pacific Mercantile Bancorp, saw a 36% gain to $65 million in revenue, or, in the bank holding company’s case, interest income. The $17 million gain was among the biggest on the list by actual dollar amount.
Pacific Mercantile also is among the few profitable companies on the list, with a 21% rise to $6.9 million in net income last year.
Biggest Gainer
The biggest gain in actual revenue came from No. 78 Aliso Viejo-based Smith Micro Software Inc. The company added $34 million in revenue, a 169% increase, for a total of $54.5 million last year.
Smith Micro, which makes software for wireless networking, is seeing gains from a 2004 contract with New York’s Verizon Wireless, part of Verizon Communications Inc.
The company makes software that gets laptops, digital assistants and wireless phones linked to the Internet on citywide networks.
Smith Micro also has expanded sales to Verizon with software for its V-Cast music service. The offering is a sort of mobile iTunes, allowing users to buy songs that are beamed to their phones.
Sales to Verizon have spurred big growth at Smith Micro,and reliance on Verizon. The telecommunications company makes up about three-fourths of Smith Micro’s sales.
Together, Smith Micro and Pacific Mercantile were a quarter of the $217 million in new revenue at the 50 companies last year.
By percentage, the biggest revenue gainer was No. 113 Aliso Viejo-based online travel agency Joystar Inc., which grew 1,616% to $8.3 million in sales last year.
Thirty companies recorded higher revenue in the past year. Seventeen saw lower sales. Three didn’t have year-ago figures available for comparison.
No. 82 Diedrich Coffee Inc. saw a 6% drop in sales to $47.9 million. The Irvine-based coffee wholesaler swung to a net loss of $8.6 million, compared to a gain of $13.1 million a year ago.
Diedrich could see another sales drop this year as a transition plays out. In January, Diedrich sold its coffeehouses to Starbucks Corp. for $13.5 million. The company plans to focus on direct sales of coffee to restaurants and others.
Irvine’s Endologix Inc. jumped up five places to No. 104. The medical device maker posted a 106% rise in revenue to $14.7 million.
Local.com Corp., formerly Interchange Corp., fell eight places to No. 105. The Irvine Internet search advertising company saw sales fall 22% to $14.2 million. It doubled its net loss to $13.3 million.
Local.com recently landed an $8 million investment from Hearst Interactive Media, the Internet arm of media giant Hearst Corp., which owns the San Francisco Chronicle, Cosmopolitan magazine and iVillage.com.
At No. 107 was Brea-based Naturade Inc. with $11.9 million in sales, a 7% drop. Its net loss deepened to $10.9 million, from $683,000 a year earlier.
Naturade, a health drink and supplement maker, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in August after Los Angeles-based buyout firm Redux Holdings Inc. took a majority stake.
Naturade has said it plans on emerging from bankruptcy as early as this spring. It currently trades on Pink Sheets.
Debuts
Several companies debuted on the list.
The highest ranking newcomer was No. 85, Irvine-based IsoTis OrthoBiologics Inc. The company, which makes bone graft substitutes, started trading in January after buying out a majority of the shares of its foreign-owned parent.
IsoTis’ revenue was up 27% to $40.7 million. It swung to a loss of $18.5 million from a profit of $900,000 a year earlier.
At No. 96 was OC’s only initial public offering of 2007 so far: Aliso Viejo-based SenoRx Inc. The medical device maker posted a 32% increase in sales to $25.5 million. Its net loss was $15.4 million, a 79% drop from a year ago.
SenoRx’s main device, EnCor, allows doctors to obtain multiple breast biopsy samples through a single-probe insertion.
Aliso Viejo-based Avanir Pharmaceuticals debuted at No. 104. It moved its headquarters to OC from San Diego last fall.
The drug maker was down 9% to $15.2 million in sales. It doubled its net loss to $62.6 million from a year ago.
It’s now looking to lower operating costs to continue developing Zenvia, a drug designed to treat a neurological disorder that causes involuntary emotional outbursts. Most recently it has seen costly regulatory setbacks in Zenvia’s development.
Last week, Avanir got a boost after results of a clinical trial showed Zenvia lessened nerve pain in diabetics.
Another up and comer: No. 108, Irvine drug maker IDM Pharma Inc. It saw a 64% rise in sales to $11.1 million. IDM posted a net loss of $23.4 million, up 40% from a year ago.
No. 110 San Juan Capistrano-based American Mold Guard Inc. went public a year ago. It reported sales of $9.4 million, up 52%, and a net loss of $7.6 million, down 28%.
Coming off this year’s list:
Last year’s No. 111, Trestle Holdings Inc., was acquired by this year’s No. 91 Clarient Inc. in September. The acquisition spurred Clarient’s 67% jump in revenue to $33.6 million. Clarient saw its net income drop 12% to a loss of $16.6 million.
The company provides medical services, such as patient billing and diagnostics.
Last year’s No. 115 DPAC Technologies Corp. moved its headquarters to Hudson, Ohio, after it acquired Quatech Inc., which was based in Hudson. Quatech makes servers and networking products.
