Washington Business Journal articles from February 1990

Washington Business Journal archives from February 1990

Marriott goes back to school with new plan. (targets colleges in planning new retirement communities)
February 26, 1990... Marriott goes back to school with new plan Marriott Corp. is quietly but aggressively targeting large university campuses across the country as new opportunities to develop its senior living communities, primarily appealing to retired...

Perpetual prepares for loan losses, others may follow. (Perpetual Financial Corp.)
February 26, 1990... Perpetual prepares for loan losses, others may follow Perpetual Financial Corp. could formally acknowledge today loan problems that one analyst says should encourage other area thrifts to admit to sizable lending troubles of their own. ...

Metro Building Supply: drywall firm drafts plan to exit from Chapter 11.
February 26, 1990... Metro Building Supply Drywall firm drafts plan to exit from Chapter 11 Sterling-based Metro Building Supply took a step toward emerging from bankruptcy last week as it reached an agreement with its creditors committee on the terms of a...

Cushwa bricks keep rolling sans Cushwas. (Victor Cushwa and Sons Inc. bought by Steetley Building of England)
February 26, 1990... Cushwa bricks keep rolling sans Cushwas For the first time in its 118-year history, Victor Cushwa & Sons Inc., Williamsport's upscale brickmakers, is operating without a Cushwa at the kiln. For five generations, the small-town family...

Beitzell & Co. falls victim to changing liquor industry. (local wholesalers consolidate)
February 26, 1990... Beitzell & Co. falls victim to changing liquor industry A shifting market and a steep drop in consumption has led longtime District wine and spirits wholesaler Beitzell and Co. Inc. to sell off its liquor lines to competitor Forman Brothers...

Horvath admits diverting funds. (Steve P. Horvath)
February 26, 1990... Horvath admits diverting funds One-time car dealer giant Steve P. Horvath, the target of a criminal investigation by the U.S. Attorney's Office, reportedly has admitted to siphoning corporate profits from a dealership and channeling the...

Perpetual bites the bullet. (Perpetual Financial Corp.; earnings and finance)
February 26, 1990... Perpetual bites the bullet Perpetual Financial Corp., whose $6-billion-asset savings and loan subsidiary encompasses 20 percent of thrift assets in greater Washington, is to announce at its annual meeting a net loss of $11 million for the...

Takeover turmoil at Lexicon.
February 26, 1990... Takeover turmoll at Lexicon Tony R. Gallardo, a former officer of Reston-based Scope Inc. that was taken over by Lexicon Corp. in 1986, is leading a charge to oust Lexicon's management for incompetence and cites recent problems at Scope as...

Versar posts loss, looks to cut costs.
February 26, 1990... Versar posts loss, looks to cut costs Springfield-based Versar Inc. reported a net loss of $321,000, or 8 cents a share, on revenues of $14.1 million for the fourth quarter. This compares with net earnings of $95,000, or 3 cents per share,...

Some look askance at CSX's offer for rail firm. (RF&P Corp.)
February 26, 1990... Some look askance at CSX's offer for rail firm Some shareholders and analysts alike are cocking an eyebrow over CSX Corp.'s recent tender offer for RF&P Corp., a railroad company whose real estate holdings include the valuable Potomac Yard...

NVR Savings picks up a struggling competitor. (Jefferson Savings and Loan Association)
February 26, 1990... NVR Savings picks up a struggling competitor Jefferson Savings & Loan Association in Warrenton - its capital wasting and its results negative amid regulatory demands for higher net worth - has embraced a sale to NVR Savings Bank in McLean...

Marsh and McLennan Cos.: shareholders approve merger of D. C. consulting firm.
February 26, 1990... Marsh & McLennan Cos. Shareholders approve merger of D.C. consulting firm The shareholders of Washington-based Strategic Planning Associates Inc., an international management consulting firm, have approved a merger with Marsh & McLennan...

CD Publications: newsletter publisher buys Minority Business Insider.
February 26, 1990... CD Publications Newsletter publisher buys Minority Business Insider Silver Spring-based CD Publications has acquired Minority Business Insider from DC Partnership of Arlington. Minority Business Insider, a monthly newsletter on small...

Dogfight ensues as more firms bid for road work. (Washington D.C. area)
February 26, 1990... Dogfight ensues as more firms bid for road work Highway and other heavy contractors that bid federal and state projects have begun feeling the downturn in private sector commercial work. They say that many of their cousins that typically...

Dominion Bankshares Corp. (analyst reports)
February 26, 1990... Dominion Bankshares Corp. Smith Barney believes that Dominion Bankshares stock offers one of the more attractive opportunities in the regional bank stock universe today. Accumulation of the stock is recommended for value-conscious, longer...

Geostar Corp. (proxy report excerpts) (company profile)
February 26, 1990... GEOSTAR CORP. No market 1001 22nd St., NW Washington, D.C. 20037 202-887-0870 OUTLOOK Geostar Corp. operates a nationwide vehicle tracking and communications system used by trucking companies and government agencies. Equipment for...

Washington Corp. (earnings)
February 26, 1990... Washington Corp. The publicly traded development firm, Washington Corp. lost nearly $2.34 million in 1989, compared to a $5.1 million profit in 1988. During the fourth quarter last year, the company's net income plummeted to $485,000, in...

Rouse Co. (earnings, finance)
February 26, 1990... Rouse Co. Columbia-based developer Rouse Co.'s total revenues increased moderately last year, but the firm's overall profits dropped nearly 50 percent. Overall, the company generated $494.9 million in 1989, in comparison to $460.7 million...

Fairfield Homes. (earnings and holdings)
February 26, 1990... Fairfield Homes Woodbridge-based Fairfield Homes sales dropped 3 percent last year, although the firm still boasted its second best year in its 14-year history. Overall, the firms sales dropped from $104 million in 1988 to $101 million...

Microlog Corp. (joint venture)
February 26, 1990... Microlog Corp. Microlog Corp., a Germantown-based voice-mail developer, formed a joint venture with Bellatrix Communications Inc. in New Jersey to provide 900 telephone service under the name of Micro-Bell. Bellatrix will act as the...

Kay Jewelers Inc. (earnings and dividends)
February 26, 1990... Kay Jewelers Inc. Kay Jewelers Inc., Alexandria, has suspended its quarterly dividend of 10 cents a share.

Group 1 Software Inc. (earnings and dividends)
February 26, 1990... Group 1 Software Inc. Group 1 Software Inc., Greenbelt, reported earnings of $509,000, or 12 cents a share, on revenue of $42 million for the fourth quarter. This compares with earnings of $673,000, or 16 cents a share, on revenue of $4.3...

Interstate General Co. L.P. (earnings and dividends)
February 26, 1990... Interstate General Co. L.P. Interstate General Co. L.P., St Charles, will pay a dividend of 20 cents per class A unit on March 1 to unit-holders of record on Feb. 22.

Life Technologies Inc. (earnings and dividends)
February 26, 1990... Life Technologies Inc. Life Technologies Inc., Gaithersburg, reported earnings of $13.2 million, or 97 cents a share, on revenue of $134 million for 1989. This compares with earnings of $12 million, or 88 cents a share, on revenue of $129...

Versar Inc. (earnings and dividends)
February 26, 1990... Versar Inc. Versar Inc., Springfield, reported a loss of $321,000, or 8 cents a share, on revenue of $14.1 million for the fourth quarter. This compares with earnings of $95,000, or 3 cents a share, on revenue of $13.8 million for the same...

AVEMCO Corp. (earnings and dividends)
February 26, 1990... AVEMCO Corp. AVEMCO Corp., Frederick, reported earnings of $13.6 million, or $1.55 a share, on revenue of $91.1 million, for 1989. This compares with earnings of $18.4 million, or $2.03 a share, on revenue of $106 million for 1988.

Lafarge Corp. (earnings and dividends)
February 26, 1990... Lafarge Corp. Lafarge Corp., Reston, will pay a dividend of 10 cents a share on March 1 to shareholders of record on Feb. 23.

Smithfield Foods Inc. (earnings and dividends)
February 26, 1990... Smithfield Foods Inc. Smithfield Foods Inc., Smithfield, reported earnings of $4.7 million, or 63 cents a share, on revenue of $242 million for the quarter ended Jan. 28. This compares with earnings of $5.1 million, or 62 cents a share, on...

Homecall Inc. (earnings and dividends)
February 26, 1990... Homecall Inc. Homecall Inc., Frederick, reported a loss of $12,000 on revenue of $1.3 million for the fourth quarter. This compares with earnings of $100,000, or 4 cents a share, on revenue of $1.2 million for the same period in 1988.

Halifax Engineering Inc. (earnings and dividends)
February 26, 1990... Hallfax Engineering Inc. Hallfax Engineering Inc., Alexandria, reported a loss of $345,000, or 29 cents a share, on revenue of $6.7 million for the fourth quarter. This compares with earnings of $202,000, or 17 cents a share, on revenue of...

Capital Housing and Mortgage Partners Inc. (earnings and dividends)
February 26, 1990... Capital Housing and Mortgage Partners Inc. Capital Housing and Mortgage Partners Inc., Rockville, will pay a dividend of 12 cents a share on March 30 to shareholders of record on Feb. 28.

Reactive video comes of age as teaching tool; cottage industry springs up around local innovations.
February 19, 1990... Reactive video comes of age as teaching tool On the TV screen in front of you, a young soldier lies screaming in an Army hospital tent. At his side, an intern worries about what to do first - pump his lungs or run a diagnosis or give...

This private eye mostly uses her ears. (Maureen Gawler)
February 19, 1990... This private eye mostly uses her ears Maureen Gawler moves quickly to dispel any stereotypes about herself and her profession - a private dick, a sleuth, a snoop, a slick, a sneak, a Sherlock Holmes of sorts. The gun, she explains, was...

Orbital may launch stock before rocket; firm moves to take advantage of recent fascination with space. (Orbital Sciences Corp.) (company profile)
February 19, 1990... Orbital may launch stock before rocket Orbital Sciences Corp., a company seeking to expand commercial opportunities in space by putting low-cost "baby" satellites into orbit for private clients, plans to go public this spring even as its...

Housing industry halted by delays of handicap rules.
February 19, 1990... Housing industry halted by delays for handicap rules Saws and hammers are falling silent across the region and nation as builders curtail construction of new apartments in the absence of federal guidelines for handicapped access that were...

Word near on who gets Cafritz millions; hearing scheduled for March on suit filed by aggrieved sons. (Morris Cafritz family)
February 19, 1990... Word near on who gets Cafritz millions The sons of Morris Cafritz, the Washington real estate magnate who died in 1964, might get a clue next month if they will get control of the abundant estate left to the Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz...

Maryland thrift to acquire Sunrise Federal Savings. (Second National Federal Savings Bank)
February 19, 1990... Maryland thrift to acquire Sunrise Federal Savings Second National Federal Savings Bank, Annapolis, has received approval from the Office of Thrift Supervision to acquire Sunrise Federal Savings and Loan Association of Virginia. ...

Tisoft sued by subcontractor that claims it was dumped after being used to get job. (Network Systems Corp.)
February 19, 1990... Tisoft sued by subcontractor that claims it was dumped after being used to get job Fairfax-based Tisoft Inc., a high technology-services firm that won a massive contract to install computers for the Justice Department last summer, recently...

Heron, Burchette latest law firm to fall by trying to grow too fast; fast-growing firm failed to provide corporate culture.
February 19, 1990... Heron, Burchette latest law firm to fall by trying to grow too fast When the D.C. law firm of Heron, Burchette, Ruckert & Rothwell collapsed last week, it became the last of a series of law firms to disintegrate in the wake of meteoric...

Irish building materials giant buys Bethesda masonry firm; Betco Block one of 3 U.S. concerns to join CRH's fold. (company profile)
February 19, 1990... Irish building materials giant buys Bethesda masonry firm Expanding Irish building materials giant CRH/plc has paved its first inroad into the D.C. market by acquiring Bethesdabased Betco Block & Products Inc, Dublin-based CRH bought...

Billing system becomes carrier's competitive edge. (American Management Systems Inc.)
February 19, 1990... Billing system becomes carrier's competitive edge Contel Corp., an Atlanta-based independent local exchange carrier, has signed a contract authorizing American Management Systems Inc. of Arlington to develop an automated billing system...

Law firm wins tax case to change at-home deductions. (McGiffue, Greif, Whitney & Handal)
February 19, 1990... Law firm wins tax case to change at-home deductions McGuffie, Greif, Whitney & Handal has persuaded the federal tax courts to change the standard applied to determine the deductibility of home office expenses in the past 10 years. ...

Marketer ties zip codes to household characteristics. (Claritas Corp.)
February 19, 1990... Marketer ties zip codes to household characteristics Claritas Corp. of Alexandria offers a new segmentation system, PRIZM+4, which allows marketers to classify the small ZIP+4 postal areas in clusters. Under codenames such as `Furs and...

Vaccine tested to halt the onset of AIDS. (MicroGeneSys Inc.)
February 19, 1990... Vaccine tested to halt the onset of AIDS West Haven, Conn.-based Microgenesys Inc. has signed a cooperative testing agreement with Walter Reed Army Institute of Research and Walter Reed Army Medical Center to conduct a large-scale efficacy...

Bank approves program to repurchase shares. (Piedmont Federal Savings Bank)
February 19, 1990... Bank approves program to repurchase shares The board of directors at Piedmont Federal Corp. of Manassas has authorized the company to repurchase up to $700,000 of its common stock. The program includes approximately 74,000 shares, or 3...

Hydroseeder squirts company with legal suit. (Washington Manufacturing Inc.)
February 19, 1990... Hydroseeder squirts company with legal suit James C. Lucore II, president of Washington Manufacturing Corp. in Sterling Va., has filed suit against Seaford, Del.-based Pumping System Inc. and its president, Robert N. Lisle in the United...

Underwriter syndicate wins bid to buy city bonds. (City of Rockville)
February 19, 1990... Underwriter syndicate wins bid to buy city bonds The City of Rockville has sold $10 million in general obligation bonds to an underwriters syndicate headed by Ferris, Baker Watts Inc. at an annual interest rate of 6.74 percent. The...

New electronics allow communities to connect. (General Electric)
February 19, 1990... New electronics allow communities to connect Rockville-based General Electric Information Services and Western Union of Upper Saddle River, N.J., will interconnect their electronic messaging services to allow communication between public...

Officers appointed with new acquisition. (ERC Environmental and Energy Services Co.)
February 19, 1990... Officers appointed with new acquisition ERC Environmental and Energy Services Co. of Fairfax has reorganized its board of directors following the acquisition of its major shareholder, ERC International, by New York-based Ogden Corp. R....

Satellite network increases bank's overseas access. (Overseas Telecommunications Inc.)
February 19, 1990... Satellite network increases bank's overseas access Chase Manhattan Bank has contracted with Overseas Telecommunications Inc. of Alexandria to provide digital private line service between the U.S. and Chase offices in Mexico. "With this...

Company changes name to reflect new owners. (Rangaire Corp.)
February 19, 1990... Company changes name to reflect new owners Shareholders of Fairfax-based Rangaire Corp. have changed the company's name to Scottish Heritable Inc. to reflect the commitment of Scottish Heritable Trust PLC which owns 50.2 percent of the...

Integral Systems rides high orbit in satellite work; small firm doubles revenue over year ago fourth quarter. (company profile)
February 19, 1990... Integral Systems rides high orbit in satellite work Satellites are proving to be the Midas touch for many Washington-area companies including Integral Systems Inc., which reported a near doubling in revenue for the fourth quarter. ...

Group 1 Software Inc. (Proxy Report Excerpts) (company profile)
February 19, 1990... GROUP 1 SOFTWARE INC. NASDAQ: GSOF 6404 Ivy Lane, Greenbelt, Md. 20770 301-982-2000 OUTLOOK Group 1 Software acquired the business and certain assets and liabilities in 1986 of the Group 1 Software division of Comnet Corp., a...

Private launch industry in turmoil as price wars curtail profit margins.
February 19, 1990... Private launch industry in turmoil as price wars curtail profit margins It began with the explosion of the space shuttle Challenger. Now, four years later, an industry born out of chaos is looking rather chaotic in its own right. ...

Strategic Planning Associates Inc. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 19, 1990... Strategic Planning Associates Inc. Strategic Planning Associates Inc., Washington, reported earnings of $353,000, or 7 cents a share, on revenue of $13.2 million for the quarter ended in November. This compares with a loss of $1.6 million, or...

National Cooperative Bank. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 19, 1990... National Cooperative Bank National Cooperative Bank, Washington, reported earnings of $14.4 million for 1989 compared with $14 million for 1988.

Freddie Mac. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 19, 1990... Freddie Mac Freddie Mac, Reston, reported earnings of $437 million, or $6.57 a share, for 1989 compared with earnings of $381 million, or $5.73 a share, for 1988.

GRC International Inc. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 19, 1990... GRC International Inc. GRC International Inc., McLean, reported a loss of $4.5 million, or 49 cents a share, on revenue of $29 million for the fourth quarter. This compares with earnings of $733,000, or 8 cents a share, on revenue of $30.5...

Systems Center Inc. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 19, 1990... Systems Center Inc. Systems Center Inc., Reston, reported earnings of $10.6 million, or $1.33 a share, on revenue of $66.2 million for 1989. This compares with earnings of $7.4 million, or 98 cents a share, on revenue of $51.7 million for...

Danaher Corp. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 19, 1990... Danaher Corp. Danaher Corp., Washington, reported earnings of $61.1 million, or $2.57 a share, on revenue of $756 million for 1989. This compares with earnings of $44 million, or $1.78 a share, on revenue of $716 million for 1988.

Life Technologies Inc. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 19, 1990... Life Technologies Inc. Life Technologies Inc., Galthersburg, reported earnings of $13.2 million or 97 cents a share, on revenue of $134 million for 1988. This compares with earnings of $12 million, or 88 cents a share, on revenue of $130...

The Washington Post Co. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 19, 1990... The Washington Post Co. The Washington Post Co., Washington, reported earnings of $198 million, or $15.50 a share, on revenue of $1.44 billion for 1989. This compares with earnings of $269 million, or $20.91 a share, on revenue of $1.37...

Washington Federal Savings Bank. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 19, 1990... Washington Federal Savings Bank Washington Federal Savings Bank reported earnings of $1.8 million, or 59 cents a share, for the quarter ended Dec. 31. This compares with a loss of $41,000, or 1 cent a share, in the period in 1988.

AVEMCO Corp. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 19, 1990... AVEMCO Corp. AVEMCO Corp. in Frederick will pay a regular quarterly common stock dividend of 10 cents a share on April 25 to shareholders of record on March 30.

Investors Financial Corp. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 19, 1990... Investors Financial Corp. Investors Financial Corp. in Richmond, parent of Investors Savings Bank, reported a loss of $8.9 million, or $1.03 a share, for 1989 after large additions to reserves for absorbing asset losses. This compares to...

Independent Banks of Virginia. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 19, 1990... Independent Banks of Virginia Independent Banks of Virginia, a network of Heritage Bank in Norfolk, Princess Anne Bank in Virginia Beach and The Heritage Bank in McLean, reported earnings of $930,000, or $1.20 a share, for 1989. This...

Hickory/Russell Inc. (New Businesses)
February 19, 1990... Hickory/Russell Inc. Hickory/Russell Inc., an investment counselling and management firm, has been formed by the investment management firm of Hickory Capital Management in association with Frank Russell Co., asset consultant....

Neighborhood Newsstand Inc. (New Businesses)
February 19, 1990... Neighborhood Newsstand Inc. Neighborhood Newsstand Inc., a periodical distribution company, now serves the entire Washington/Baltimore area. NNI maintains delivery routes to more than 1,000 retail and miscellaneous locations throughout the...

Some top Roy's franchises shun Hardee's switch. (Roy Rogers restaurants; Hardee's restaurants)
February 12, 1990... Some top Roy's franchisees shun Hardee's switch Franchisees of some of the strongest Roy Rogers restaurants may turn down the option to convert to Hardee's, creating an uncertain situation for the new owner of Marriott Corp.'s fast-food...

Ad agency restructuring around travel clients. (Barrow, Dunn and Borcz)
February 12, 1990... Ad agency restructuring around travel clients Backed by two undisclosed investor groups, the District-based advertising agency of Barrow, Dunn & Borcz has signed a contract to form a new advertising agency called Potomac Advertising Ltd....

Buffet puts National Corp. for Housing stock on block. (Warren Buffet; National Corporation for Housing Partnerships)
February 12, 1990... Buffet puts National Corp. for Housing stock on block Warren Buffet, the deft Wall Street player who rarely pawns any of his investments, plans to sell his 50-percent interest in District-based National Corporation for Housing Partnerships,...

Defense firms starry-eyed: proposed NASA budget could offset Pentagon spending drop.
February 12, 1990... Defense firms starry-eyed Millions of dollars of private sector revenue threatened by the Pentagon budget ax could be recouped in this decade by local high-technology firms, thanks to a new "space boom" proposed by the White House. ...

Will you be my Valentine - for two grand? (Singles Choice, personal introduction service)
February 12, 1990... Will you be my Valentine - for two grand? Ajay Gupta doesn't look like a cupid. The 33-year-old mustachioed biomedical engineer has piercing eyes and a cowlick in his blow-dried coiffure. But at Singles Choice in College Park, he's as...

Radiation's link to Whittle fails to spark interest. (Radiation Systems Inc.; Whittle Communications Corp.)
February 12, 1990... Radiation's link to Whittle fails to spark interest When Sterling-based Radiation Systems Inc. hooked up with Whittle Communications Corp., one of the hottest little media empires to emerge in the past decade, many naturally assumed the...

GSA rescinds Zenith's Navy pact for computers worth $534 million. (General Services Administration; Zenith Data Systems)
February 12, 1990... GSA rescinds Zenith's Navy pact for computers worth $534 million Vienna-based Zenith Data Systems last week lost a government contract worth an estimated $534 million after the General Services Administration upheld a protest filed by...

Stanwick gets a long-awaited Iranian settlement. (non-operating defense contractor)
February 12, 1990... Stanwick gets long-awaited Iranian settlement Shareholders of Stanwick Corp., the non-operating defense contractor, will receive their long-awaited reward of about $2.2 million - or about $2.46 a share - from an Iranian bank that has been...

Tysons National files registration. (Tysons National Bank)
February 12, 1990... Tysons National files registration Hopeful organizers of Tysons National Bank have registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission an offering of common stock that would raise as much as $7.1 million to capitalize the institution....

Fed Data reported near sale of its micro division. (Federal Data Corp.)
February 12, 1990... Fed Data reported near sale of its micro division Federal Data Corp. of Bethesda, a pioneer in the computer systems integration field, reportedly has signed a letter of intent to sell its microcomputer division to privately held Sysorex...

GAO hands honeywell, Apple setback on big military project. (General Accounting Office; Honeywell Federal Systems Inc.; Apple Computer Inc.)
February 12, 1990... GAO hands Honeywell, Apple setback on big military pact The General Accounting Office last week recommended that a $164 million Air Force computer contract be overturned, after it ruled that Apple Macintosh computers included in the winning...

Maryland's auto rates top list of country's most expensive. (automobile insurance rates)
February 12, 1990... Maryland's auto rates top list of country's most expensive In a protest movement that could seriously alter Maryland's $2.1 billion auto insurance market, a growing number of the state's drivers are complaining that they are paying too much...

Live Entertainment completes deal for record store chain. (Waxie Maxie Quality Music Co.)
February 12, 1990... Live Entertainment completes deal for record store chain Ninety-four percent of District-based Waxie Maxie Quality Music Co.'s shareholders approved acquisition of the company by Live Entertainment Inc. Waxie Maxie shareholders will receive...

New technology enhances delivery of news photos. (United Press International expands news photo services)
February 12, 1990... New technology enhances delivery of news photos D.C.-based United Press International will invest more than $5.5 million in state-of-the-art computerization and satellite transmission capabilities to expand its news photos service to U.S....

TV serves as bridge to future jobs. (American Resources Inc, video production firm, begins "The Employment Channel")
February 12, 1990... TV serves as bridge to future jobs American Resources Inc., a Rockville-based personnel and video production firm, has launched a new weekly recruitment television program entitled "The Employment Channel" on Channel 50-WFTY. The...

Stock sales targeted at corporate gains. (Crestar Financial Corp.)
February 12, 1990... Stock sales targeted at corporate gains Richmond-based Crestar Financial Corp. has authorized the purchase of up to 1 million shares of its common stock on the open market this year. The purchased common stock will go towards the...