St. Louis Business Journal articles from June 1998

St. Louis Business Journal archives from June 1998

A-B takes top spot on public company list. (Anheuser-Busch tops 'St. Louis Business Journaal's 1998 ranking of the largest publicly owned companies)
June 1, 1998... The King of Beers is the king of St. Louis' public companies again. Anheuser-Busch Cos. Inc. has Boeing Co. to thank for that distinction. When the Seattle company merged McDonnell Douglas Corp. into its aerospace operations, Anheuser-Busch...

Trading places. (interview with Royal Banks of Missouri and Royal Bancshares Inc.'s Pres and CEO Richard Jensen)(Banking and Investments)(Interview)
June 1, 1998... Richard Jensen of Royal Banks shares his thoughts on neighborhood banking and his departure from NationsBank Richard Jensen surprised the banking community April 1, when he gave up the presidency of NationsBank's St. Louis bank to become...

SAFECO ensures room to grow with new offices. (SAFECO Insurance Co.)
June 1, 1998... SAFECO Insurance Cos. plans to construct a $35 million office building at Manchester Road and Interstate 270 to consolidate its operations here, real estate sources said. SAFECO, which acquired American States Financial Corp. in October, will...

Riverport casinos report record revenue during April. (April, 1998)
June 1, 1998... While the Riverport casinos had record revenue in April, area gambling spots in general crapped out in snatching between $4 million and $5 million in business from the President Casino while it was closed in April. The President Casino on the...

Ultradata tries to find its way back to profitability. (Ultradata Systems Inc.)
June 1, 1998... Shares of Ultradata Systems Inc., the local maker of navigation gear for motorists, have plummeted to a third of their high of two years ago, but the stock's dive might have a silver lining. Despite the company's recent earnings woes, it is...

Freeman and Skrainka set tone for top stock pickers. (A.G. Edward's chief market strategist Stuart Freeman and Edward Jones' chief investment strategist Alan Skrainka)
June 1, 1998... Stock pickers at conservative St. Louis brokerages A.G. Edwards & Sons and Edward Jones consistently have ranked among the top stock pickers of the major national investment houses. Last month, A.G. Edwards was No. 3 in a Wall Street Journal...

Schnucks, Dierbergs bet on residential expansion. (Schnuck Markets Inc.; Dierbergs Markets Inc.)
June 1, 1998... Two local supermarket companies are making calculated wagers on residential growth patterns. As undeveloped land becomes more scarce, the region's supermarket companies are snatching up real estate in anticipation of growth in outlaying areas....

Bortz Diabetes Control Center catches United's eye. (United Health Care of the Midwest)
June 1, 1998... Bortz Diabetes Control Center, a one-stop shop for treating diabetics, has drawn the attention of one of the area's largest managed health-care companies. United Health Care of the Midwest is considering a possible alliance with the center,...

Intensiva negotiating for a long-term care hospital at Deaconess. (Intensiva HealthCare Corp.'s plan to open a long-term acute care hospital in at Deaconess Central Hospital, St. Louis, Missouri)
June 1, 1998... Intensiva HealthCare Corp. expects to open a long-term acute care hospital in the St. Louis area by the end of the year. The "hospital within a hospital," designed to serve critically ill patients who need extended hospital stays, likely would...

Furniture sellers have little time to recline. (Choice Furniture)(Company Profile)
June 1, 1998... Grewe, Tentschert work 80 hours a week to build Choice Furniture Business activity: When Eric Tentschert and Dan Grewe started Choice Furniture, they filled their showroom with furniture they liked. When the furniture didn't sell well, they...

Lilies sprout success for St. Louis native. (success of Craig Williamson's Bee Fork Water Gardens lily plantation)
June 8, 1998... Three turns off Highway 21 is a county road that meanders two more dusty miles through the forests of Reynolds County to a couple of unimpressive concrete buildings at the edge of a mowed Field. On a Sunday morning in late May, with the...

Monsanto merger may hurt local suppliers. (impact of Monsanto Co.'s merger with American Home Products on St. Louis, Missouri-based businesses)
June 8, 1998... Law firms Bryan Cave and Thompson Coburn see a green lining in Monsanto Co.'s $35 billion merger with American Home Products. Meanwhile, advertising and marketing agencies hem. most of which work on the Monsanto agricultural business, were more...

Feeding frenzy: Olive-Broadway hot block for investors. (real estate market near Olive St. and Broadway downtown in St. Louis, Missouri)
June 8, 1998... Institutional investors are gobbling up all the real estate they can near Olive Street and Broadway downtown. The NationsBank Tower and the Millennium Center (formerly the Executive Office Building) have sold within the past month, and the sale...

Large retailers looking for location, location, location. (boom in retail developments in St. Charles County, Missouri)
June 8, 1998... If retail has been the laggard in this strong economy, the message hasn't gotten to St. Charles County. Adramatic increase in population coupled with the pro-growth policies of most municipalities has led to an explosion in retail development...

Unigraphics IPO may start slowly, but should do well. (Unigraphics Solutions' initial public offering on Jun 15, 1998)
June 8, 1998... Unigraphics Solutions will suffer from recent weakness in the technology market in its initial public offering, though overall the firm will be popular with investors, experts say. St. Louis-based Unigraphics is part of Electronic Data Systems....

St. Charles wineries grow sales by joint marketing. (success of wine industry in St. Charles County, Missouri)
June 8, 1998... Missouri's wine industry is booming - and the wineries in St. Charles County are playing a big part in the growth. A July 1997 study for the Missouri Department of Agriculture's Grape and Wine program found wine production in the state...

St. Charles County boom: more banks for the buck. (opening of banks in St. Charles County, Missouri)
June 8, 1998... St. Charles County has become a bank magnet. Since September 1995, Centennial, Enterprise, Allegiant, People's, First National, Truman and Clifford Banks have opened facilities in St. Charles County. Citizens National Bank expects to open a...

Greater Missouri Builder working on two projects. (development of two business parks in St. Charles County, Missouri)
June 8, 1998... Greater Missouri Builder quietly is developing two business parks in St. Charles County. The 30-year-old company is building a 60-acre site, called 64 West, in Weldon Springs and another 56-acre site in St. Charles. "We've developed the...

Tenet cuts out new market, plans surgery center in Festus. (Tenet St. Louis HealthSystem's plans for opening an outpatient surgical center in Festus, Missouri)
June 8, 1998... Tenet St. Louis HealthSystem plans to open an outpatient surgery center in Festus. Spokeswoman Teresa Huskey said the project is key to Tenet's goal to establish an integrated health system in the St. Louis area. Tenet, the No. 2 for-profit...

Allegiant switches to Erst & Young's ledger. (Allegiant Bancorp Inc contracted Ernst and Young LLP's accounting services)
June 15, 1998... After losing the Boatmen's Bancshares and Mark Twain Bancshares accounts to mergers, Ernst & Young's St. Louis office has added Allegiant Bancorp Inc. to its stable of bank clients. Ernst & Young's gain is BDO Seidman's loss. BDO had been...

Duke takes a gamble. (Duke Realty Investments Inc)
June 15, 1998... Plans three spec industrial buildings Duke Realty Investments is building more than 500,000 square feet of speculative industrial space in Earth City and West Port. The Indianapolis-based real estate investment trust's plans include: *...

Olin credit union membership up 21% with Alt-Wood merger. (Olin Employees Credit Union; Alt-Wood Credit Union)
June 15, 1998... Olin Employees Credit Union, one of the largest credit unions in the St. Louis area, expanded its membership by nearly 21 percent March 1, when it merged with Alt-Wood Credit Union of Alton. The merger added more than 5,000 members to Olin's...

Hilton checking out sites in Fairview Heights, O'Fallon. (Hilton Hotels Corp)
June 15, 1998... Hilton Hotels, eager to cash in on the development boom in the Metro East, is considering sites in Fairview Heights and O'Fallon for a new luxury hotel, officials in the communities said. In Fairview Heights, Hilton is interested in the area...

As miniseries cameras roll, city bids for 3 film projects. (St Louis, Missouri)
June 15, 1998... While the city is following the filming of "A Will of Their Own," a miniseries starring Lea Thompson, the St. Louis Film Office is chasing three other movies and has announced the start date for an independent film starring William Hurt and...

Health Partners poised to change ad firm.
June 15, 1998... Health Partners of the Midwest, the health maintenance organization owned by BJC Health System and the Washington University School of Medicine, is on the verge of changing advertising firms for assignments thought to be worth between $1 million...

Venture Stores leases going to Kimco for $95 million. (Venture Stores Inc; Kimco Realty Corp)
June 15, 1998... The U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del., will allow Venture Stores Inc. to sell its leases to Kimco Realty Corp. for about $95 million. No competing offers to buy the leases were submitted. Kimco will lease the buildings to Kmart...

Renex plans to double dialysis clinics. (Renex Corp)
June 15, 1998... Renex Corp. is preparing to open its fifth kidney dialysis clinic in the St. Louis area and plans to double that number in the next several years. Growing demand for treatment has prompted the expansion, said James Shea, president and chief...

Loomis Bros. unfolds expansion plan. (Loomis Brothers Equipment Co)
June 15, 1998... Laundry equipment distributor cleans up with $ 7 million in sales Business Activity: Loomis Bros. Equipment Co., a distributor of commercial laundry equipment, is celebrating its 50th anniversary by expanding into a new market, hiring its first...

Mercantile buys Bruno Stolze. (bank holding firm Mercantile Bancorporation Inc. acquires discount brokerage firm Bruno Stolze and Co.)
June 22, 1998... A June wedding has brought together Mercantile Bancorporation and Bruno Stolze & Co. Mercantile acquired Bruno Stolze, the first discount brokerage firm in St. Louis when it was established in 1975, for an estimated $6 million. Gail...

Dennis Jones sells $6 million in shares. (Jones Pharma Inc. stocks sold by its co-founder)
June 22, 1998... Dennis Jones, seeking to diversify his holdings, recently sold more than $6 million in Jones Pharma Inc. stock. "For the past three years, I have had an annual sell program," Jones said. 'I'm going to be 60 years old this year, and at some...

Mallinckrodt changes. (chemical manufacturer Mallinckrodt Inc. replaces retiring president and will lay off workers)
June 22, 1998... Mack Nichols retiring; job cuts likely Mallinckrodt Inc., reorganizing after its acquisition of Nellcor Puritan Bennett, named a new president of its respiratory group and is considering layoffs of sales and support workers in St. Louis. In...

Healthy advice. (St. Louis, Missouri, law offices provide services to health care companies)
June 22, 1998... Allred, Andrew, other lawyers treat clients' financial needs Tracy Mathis is a lawyer who knows what it's like to live a doctor's life. "I remember one call (from a hospital client) about a woman who was going to have a tubal ligation. Her...

Bryan Cave makes its case with starting pay at $70,000. (salary offered by St. Louis, Missouri, law firm to freshman lawyers)
June 22, 1998... Thompson Coburn to follow; some firms balking Two years after Bryan Cave kicked salaries for starting lawyers up to $60,000, the law firm is giving its freshman attorneys another boost - this one to $70,000. In St. Louis, the move will...

Public Safety Equipment bought for $122.2 million. (UK-based car parts maker Britax International plc acquires video surveillance equipment manufacturer)
June 22, 1998... Britax International plc, a publicly held British company, is acquiring St. Louis-based Public Safety Equipment Inc. for $122.2 million. Public Safety has been looking for a way to raise capital to support its rapid growth. The company...

McDonald's moving office to 40West in Chesterfield. (hamburger chain operator McDonald's Corp. to relocate Missouri headquarters)
June 22, 1998... McDonald's Corp. is moving its regional headquarters to 40West, a $16 million office complex in Chesterfield. The fast-food restaurant chain's regional headquarters is now located at 922 Roosevelt Parkway in a Sachs Properties building in...

Lou Susman appointed advisory director at D&K. (drug wholesaler D and K Healthcare Resources Inc.)
June 22, 1998... D&K Healthcare Resources Inc. has hired a top investment banker from Smith Barney Inc. as advising director, a move that could aid future acquisitions. J. Hord Armstrong III, chairman and chief executive of D&K, said the company isn't planning...

Jones Pharma Inc. (proxy report excerpts)(Company Profile)
June 22, 1998... Dennis M. Jones Chairman, president and chief executive officer Jones Pharma Inc., formerly known as Jones Medical Industries, manufactures, markets, distributes and sells specialty pharmaceutical products under its own trademarks and...

Miller tops highest paid. (Edison Brothers Stores Inc. CEO Alan Miller)
June 29, 1998... Alan Miller is a $5 million "Mr. Mom." Miller is former chairman, president and chief executive of Edison Brothers Stores Inc. He has been spending time at home with his children this summer since walking away with $2.9 - million most of it a...

Hager hinged on restructuring. (Hager Cos.)
June 29, 1998... After nearly 150 years of making hinges, St. Louis-based Hager Cos. has reinvented itself under the leadership of August W. "Rusty" Hager III. In the space of 16 months, the company re-engineered its three hinge manufacturing plants from a...

Minority firm buys 15 stations. (St. Louis Petroleum and Marketing Inc.)
June 29, 1998... Civic Ventures, NationsBank pump in cash St. Louis Petroleum and Marketing Inc. has vaulted into the No. 2 spot among the largest minority-owned businesses in the area after purchasing 15 Clark service stations in St. Louis and East St. Louis...

Why Maureen McAvey resigned. (interview with the former director of the St. Louis Development Corp.)(Interview)
June 29, 1998... Force to execute bad financial deals and to use large amounts of public dollars unwisely for housing are among reasons cited by Maureen McAvey for her abrupt resignation as director of the St. Louis Development Corp. McAvey, who was appointed...

Pro Stock Truck builders find it anything but a drag: Haas, Bickel built trucks in races at Gateway. (Jerry Haas Race Cars and Jerry Bickel Race Cars; Gateway International Raceway)
June 29, 1998... The introduction of Pro Stock Trucks this year as a professional category of the National Hot Rod Association has business zooming for two local chassis builders. Jerry Haas Race Cars of Fenton and Jerry Bickel Race Cars of Troy, Mo., built...

Adamson beefs up with Lion's Choice. (Adamson Advertising Inc.'s advertising contract)
June 29, 1998... New retail clients translate into $750,000 in added revenue for agency Adamson Advertising Co. used to be better known for its marketing work for businesses advertising to other businesses. Since the beginning of the year, however, the...

'Hospitalists' chart progress of inpatients. (Inpatient Management Inc.'s services)
June 29, 1998... IMI, St. John's internists practice only at hospitals Terri Orf worked for many years as a physician recruiter and knows the medical system. Or she thought she did, until her father was dying from pancreatic cancer and she couldn't find a...

Window of opportunity. (profile of Dalco Home Remodeling)(Company Profile)
June 29, 1998... Dickersons build $17 million business on hot remodeling market Business Activity: With a father, two sons and three daughters working for the company, Dalco Home Remodeling truly puts the family in family-owned business. Dalco manufactures...