South Florida Business Journal articles from April 1996

South Florida Business Journal archives from April 1996

HMO revenues up, profits down in '95.(Industry Overview)
April 26, 1996... A handful of health maintenance organizations doing business in South Florida and the rest of the state made huge profits last year, but two-thirds lost money in the final months of 1995. The losses may signal the beginning of an industry...

1st United's stock climbs: earnings, assets are on the grow. (1st United Bank)
April 26, 1996... BOCA RATON - 1st United Bank has grown almost tenfold in the past five years and is now the biggest commercial bank headquartered in Palm Beach County. Acquiring troubled banks has fueled its growth from $50 million in assets in 1990 to $450...

Q-Zar looks for Broward space.
April 26, 1996... BROWARD COUNTY - A Dallas-based indoor entertainment chain is looking for several large chunks of retail space for laser tag, bowling, billiards and food courts. Q-Zar Inc. hopes to find three or four retail spaces of 60,000 to 80,000 square...

MICC owner tries to polish park's image. (Miami International Commerce Center owner Heitman Properties Ltd.)
April 26, 1996... MIAMI - When the A. Suarez Co. decided recently to lease 12,000 square feet at Miami International Commerce Center, the tenant submitted a letter of intent on a Monday, signed a lease on Friday of the same week and found its space ready for...

Catalfumo to buy auditorium site. (Catalfumo Construction and Development)
April 26, 1996... Mayor will supervise project WEST PALM BEACH - Randall Greene, director of development for Catalfumo Construction and Development, looks at a 72-acre site along Palm Beach Lakes Boulevard and sees opportunity. "That is one of the last...

Investors buy majority of Enterprise. (Enterprise National Bank)
April 26, 1996... NORTH PALM BEACH - Several South Florida investors have bought control of Enterprise National Bank, a $36 million bank based in North Palm Beach. Warren Mosler, Clifford Viner and Michael Reger, partners in Adams, Viner and Mosler, an...

The old SafeCard Services sells to CUC at $13.75 a share.
April 26, 1996... As had been anticipated, Ideon Group Inc. has been sold. The former SafeCard Services agreed to a $13.50-a-share stock deal with CUC International, the membership services giant. Subject to shareholder and regulatory approval, the $375...

Entertainment giant is scouting S. Fla. market. (Saban Entertainment)
April 19, 1996... SOUTH FLORIDA - Heavyweights from Saban Entertainment in Los Angeles are in town this week scouting South Florida for talent and locations for upcoming feature films and TV series. If they like it here, it could help to put South Florida's...

The hospital CEO merry-go-round. (South Florida hospitals)
April 19, 1996... South Florida execs come and go quickly Keeping track of who is in charge at each of South Florida's hospitals is harder than keeping up with which husband Liz Taylor is married to this year. Increasing merger and acquisition activity,...

Can Huizenga boost sports' stock on Wall Street? (H. Wayne Huizenga; public offerings of sports franchises)
April 19, 1996... FORT LAUDERDALE - Sports teams have a less-than-stellar record when playing on Wall Street. But if anybody can convince investors of the viability of stock in pro sports franchises, analysts say, it's probably H. Wayne Huizenga. Huizenga...

Retailers hope for home run with S. Florida home stores.
April 19, 1996... Home may be where the heart is, but retailers are hoping it's where the wallet is too. With consumers spending less on clothes and more on their homes, specialty home stores are booming and major department stores are rushing to spin off...

Is market madness evidence of 'herd mentality'? (bank branches in supermarkets)
April 19, 1996... Barnett is doing it, NationsBank is too. First Federal of the Palm Beaches has done it and so has First Western Bank. "It" is supermarket branches, and everyone seems to be jumping on the bandwagon. Wells Fargo, for example, plans to move...

Aviation company accused of fraud, faces bankruptcy. (JetLease Finance Corp.)
April 12, 1996... FORT LAUDERDALE - When Walter and Anna Nows invested $50,000 in a promissory note issued by JetLease Finance Corp, they were told their investment was secured by a lien on a Cessna 310. But when Walter Nows did some checking recently with the...

Do-it-yourself dishes: pottery painting craze hits S. Florida. (California Colortime; California Paintbox)
April 12, 1996... On a quest for a birthday gift, a young man wanders into what he thought would be a store full of brightly colored tableware. "I don't get it," he says to owner Mindy Schain, eyeing the shelves of plain white pottery and bottles of colorful...

BankAtlantic deal draws applause. (acquires Bank of North America)
April 12, 1996... FORT LAUDERDALE - Sometimes good deeds can lead to good deals. After all, it was working on Habitat for Humanity houses that helped bring BankAtlantic and Bank of North of America together. And this week, BankAtlantic agreed to buy Bank of...

Company hopes that hair loss will be its gain. (Medical Hair Institute)
April 12, 1996... PLANTATION - After less than a year in the business of buying and running hair restoration clinics, Medical Hair Institute will try to raise $35 million in a public stock offering. The Plantation-based company, which was formed last...

Highly skilled temps keep customers happy. (temporary employment agencies)(Industry Overview)
April 12, 1996... In the business world, keeping up with the Joneses has become more a case of keeping up with the Gateses. With computer giants continually introducing new systems and software, businesses feel pressure to buy them (after all, no one wants to...

CliniCorp making comeback with new strategy.
April 12, 1996... Doctors, chiropractors are going to join forces WEST PALM BEACH - When Lawrence T. Markson decided to take over the helm at CliniCorp Inc. last October, his colleagues wondered why he would want to board a sinking ship. What was left of...

Southeast trustee amends suit against Steel Hector & Davis. (bankruptcy trustee William R. Brandt)
April 12, 1996... Law firm says claims are time-barred MIAMI - Never say die seems to be the motto of Southeast Banking Corp. bankruptcy trustee William R. Brandt, who is back with new allegations in a suit relating to the demise of one of Miami's flagship...

Working at home becoming a 'virtual' reality for many.(Column)
April 12, 1996... On the way to work, my neighbor Elliott flagged me down and invited me in to show me his computer terminal. Instead of joining me for a long drive in rush hour traffic downtown, Elliott explained that, although he is a senior level executive in...