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Show Q Financial Markets B6-B- 8 Q Mutual Funds B7-B- 8 El Local Business B8 is1 offmsnnflrasg m The Daily Herald Friday, September 20, 1996 kD Is Microsoft Market in brief September 19, 1996 lITfifilWBf Previous close Percent change Amsterdam 0.1 AMEX Milan it ATirrsie tOJMAll r S&P500 563.16 Paris Frankfurt NASDAQ i 0.05 i Advances: 1,114 Declines: 1,266 New highs London "eSTl nSTjjl5675 Zurich osraJ 3355.7 3690,1 vwiivi q.5 851 Unchanged: Tokyo 11594.031 0.06j nncMr rernn o.5 Hong Kong NYSE Diary 2072.73 Sydney 2625-7- rum "V Tl l 1754.65 0.2 j E3TI 0-- Brussels S&P MidCap Tl 0.1 Amsterdam: CBS-neshares .general Frankfurt: DAX. Hong Kong Hang Brussels: CAC-4Tokyo: Nikkei. Seng. London: FT 100. Paris: Sydney: All Ordinaries. Zurich: Credit Suisse. Milan: MIS. na: not available. holiday. MARKETS Composite volume: 476,085,900 1995 avg. comp. vol.: 422,909,640 AP Local nifjhHnht G PROVO Hyrum Smith, chairman of Franklin Quest Co. and world renowned expert on time management, planning and motivation will speak at a luncheon Sept. 25, at the Riverside Country Club at noon. The luncheon is sponsored by The Utah Valley Management Society. Reservations are required and may be made by calling Laurzia at Larsen-Davi- s 7 at or fax to The cost is $10 for members and $12 for nonmem-ber- s. The public is invited. 375-017- 343-070- 0. Evans Sutherland Computer Corp. SALT LAKE CITY & ESCC) (Nasdaq: Wednesday announced that its board of directors has approved a stock repurchase program by which up to 500,000 shares of its common stock may be acquired by the company in the open market or in negotiated transactions. As of Sept. 8, Evans & Sutherland had approximately 9.275 million shares of common stock outstanding using the primary shares method of calculation. 1 ROY Iomega Corp. (Nasdaq: IOMG) Thursday announced that its internal Zip drives for original equipment manufacturers are expected to be fully bootable as drive A: on certain new personal computers incorporating the new technology. The addition of bootability will increase the internal Zip drive's functionality and flexibility and enhance the ability of the internal Zip drive to become the new standard removable storage 1.44MB the floppy. replacing At the SALT LAKE CITY annual shareholders' meeting of Sfcire International Corp. Sept. 10, shareholders approved an amendment to the articles of incorporation to change the company's name to Sento Technical Innovations Corp. Gary B. Godfrey, chairman of Sento Technical Innovations, noted that the new name will provide flexibility with respect to company operations across the United States and internationally, and will not be restricted by names similar to Spire International. Ameri-ca- n SALT LAKE CITY Stores Co. (NYSE: ASC) Thursday announced that it has reached an agreement with Hallmark Cards, Inc., to become the company's major supplier of greeting cards and related products in its food and drug store operations throughout the United States. American Stores Co. will continue carrying the Hallmark brand in its drug stores and will introduce Hallmark's Ambassador brand to all food stores beginning in 1997. Orem-base- d ATLANTA Novell Inc. (Nasdaq: NOVL) this, week announced that it has partnered with SOFTBANK Expos' Online Division, developers of the NetWorldInterop Web site, to Online Interop power with (http:www.interop.com) Novell's newly IntranetWare announced Internetintranet SALT LAKE CITY Ion Laser Technology Co. (AMEX: ILT) announced the successful development of a prototype device that is expected to have application to the company's laser tooth whitening process. This device was developed as part of a research project with the United Technologies Research Center, a unit of United Technologies Corp. The device will allow chemifor a faster photo-thermcal reaction to speed up the whitening process when used in conjunction with the company's laser systems. al SALT LAKE CITY Create-A-Chec- k Inc., a leading developer and and provider of check-writin- g softnegotiable document-printin- g ware and systems, Thursday announced it has signed a marketing and development agreement with CFI ProServices Inc. (Nasdaq: finanPROI) a Portland, Ore.-bascial services software provider. Under the terms of the agreement, CFI will resell two of magnetic ink character recognition (MICR) document-generatin- g software products: a new accounts and application, a loan coupon application. ed NEW YORK As it renews an Microsoft of investigation Corp., the Justice Department must resolve a tough question: Can the software company monopolize a market in which its product is a distant second? Microsoft said Thursday that the Justice Department's antitrust division had requested information about its Internet products and strategies. If the investigation broadens into a court battle, the focus would probably be on the issue of whether Microsoft can use its dominance in one segment of the software business to take over another. Microsoft's chief rival in Internet software, Netscape Communications Corp., complained to the last month that government Microsoft was using its dominance in operating systems to force personal computer makers to its Internet programs on their machines instead of competitors' products. Netscape's Navigator browser is used by about 8 out of 10 people who look for information on the Internet's World Wide Web. Microsoft's Internet Explorer only has about 15 percent of the Web pre-inst- c, Create-A-Coupo- n, CITY Co. (NYSE: FNQ) announced Thursday the signing of a letter of intent to purchase the stock of Premier Agendas Inc. and Premier School Agendas Ltd., located in Bellingham, and Abbotsford, Washington British Columbia, respectively. Premier is the leading provider of academic and personal planners for students from kindergarten to college throughout the U.S. and Canada. Premier's revenues were approximately $33 million for the 12 months ended Aug. 31. SALT Franklin LAKE Quest BOISE, Idaho (AP) Microchip manufacturer Micron Technology reported sharply lower profits; for the last three months, as its products continue td suffer from reduced market pSHces. Micron on Thursday reported a net of $18.6 million, a decline of more than 93 percent from the $281.1 million profit reported for a similar period of last year. For its fiscal year, Micron reported a profit of $593.5 million, down fromihe $844.1 million it earned in fiscal 1995. But.( most of the profit came months ago. Micron; in June reported a. quarterly profit of $58.2 million, down from the $220.2 million it earned in a similar period of 1995. Despite the drop in profits from worldwide price pressures on microchips, Micron said the $593.5 million profit, $2.76 per fully diluted share of common stock, was the second highest in its history. Micron in 1995 showed a profit of $884.1 million. "We are extremely proud of our team's outprofstanding efforts resulting in the second-moitable year in the company's history," said Steve Appleton, chairman, president and chief executive officer. He said the company has made a "phenomenal" transition to its new products. In addition, he said a subsidiary, Micron Electronics, has become a major competitor in the personal computer direct sales field. th st ink $350 million deal ial Prudential NEW YORK Insurance Co. of America signed a contract $350 million, five-yeBusiness International with Machines Corp. for the company to provide applications maintenance to Prudential's individual insurance and money management groups. Under the terms of the agreement. Integrated Systems Solutions Corp.. an IBM services subPrusidiary, will offer jobs to 900 dential employees in eight cities. "ISSC will use technology to maintain Prudential's account, providing our customers with the highest quality service available," said William ar state-of-the-- DR COPY Friel, senior vice president and Prudential's chief information officer. The outsourcing of systems by the money management group and other asset management units will allow Prudential's systems staff to' develop and maintain next generaasset managetion, ment business solutions, Prudential said. These will include trading, investment and reporting systems. state-of-the-- The individual insurance group will transfer the day-to-d- main- tenance and support of existing policy administration systems to IBM. said The Justice Department's has antitrust division had.. Microsoft's business practices MS-DO- Bill Gates are remicomplaints Netscape's niscent of allegations made by other competitors that the Justice Department has reviewed previously. "It is disappointing that our competitors continue to seek government intervention in the competitive process rather than concentrating on improving their products," Neukom said. In statements early last month, Microsoft denied it had used pressure tactics on PC manufacturers. However, the computer newspaper PC Week on Aug. 26 published a As an example of the price pressures on Micron's mainstay microchips, the company had a profit of $28 1 . 1 million on sales of $ 1 .02 billion for the three months ended Aug. 31, 1995, but just $18.6 million on sales of $700.5 million in the most recent quarter. Micron's drop in profits is contributing to a budget cutback in Idaho. The state's financial division earlier this month announced that the expected corporate tax collections for the current budget year would be down $65 million, in large part due to Micron's declining profits. That caused Gov. Phil Batt this week to order a 2.5 percent, $35.3 million, cut in state spending through next June. Micron's earnings were 9 cents for the quarter ended Aug. 29 of this year, compared with $1.30 per share one year earlier. For the last 12 months, the company said it earned $2.76 per fully diluted share compared with $3.90 in 1995. g Micron announced in February it was a $2.5 billion manufacturing plant under construction in Lehi while pressing ahead with expansion in Boise. The company said then it would spend $500 million to complete the exterior of the fabrication plant at Lehi, but will not finish the interior of the 2 plant or install equipment until market conditions warrant. per-sha- scrutiny since 1993. In entered a conMicrosoft 1994, sent decree with the agency in which it agreed to cease discountS ing practices related to its and Windows operating programs. r Critics said the settlement came too late to have a significant impact on the competitiveness of that market. Today, Microsoft's products run the basic functions of nearly 90 percent of personal computers. The request for information about Internet strategies is the first by the Justice Department since summer 1995, when it explored the company's plans for an online network. If a court found that Microsoft;! had violated the 1994 agreement; with its Internet products and sales ; tactics, the Justice Department"; ' could seek monetary penalties and I . : further restraints. under re moth-ballin- million-s- quare-foot Russia, U.S. ;:i join efforts inj oil exploration :! MOSCOW (AP) Atlantic;! Richfield Co. and Russia's largest! oil company agreed today ttr invest $5 billion over 15 years tp by far, explore for oil and gas the largest foreign investment in a joint venture in Russia. Lukoil's deal with Los Angeles-based Arco will focus on oi and gas projects in the formed Soviet Union but also envisionju; work in other countries. ; Lukoil will hold a 54 percent; stake in the venture, called LUKARCO. The two sides agreed in March on the framework for the deal, but at that time Arco said ; investment would total $3 billion over 0 years. J" Arco chairman Michael R. Bowlin said work on several projects is already under way but didn't prov ide details. Over the last year, Arco has bought an 8 percent stake in Lukoil. In addition to its main operations in western Siberia, Lukoil is active in the Caspian Sea regiflii in Azerbaijan and Kazakstan. Lwkoil also has prepared to start projects in Iraq once United Nations sanctions are lifted. , 1 Ryder sells familiar yellow trucks for $575 million By DAVID POPPE Knight-Ridd- Newspapers MIAMI Say goodbye to the familiar yellow trucks. Ryder System sold the most visible part of its business, its consumer truck rental division, for $575 million. The buyer, Questor Partners L.P. of Southfield, Mich., is paying cash for Ryder's fleet of 33,000 trucks and the right to use the Ryder name for 10 years. "The decision to sell consumer truck rental was, in many ways, an emotional one since to many people the yellow truck has become the icon of our company," said M. Anthony Burns, Ryder's chairman and chief executive. But Burns said the sale is part of a larger series of moves Ryder believes will boost future profits. U IBM-Prudent- affairs, corporate e article quoting se&in io PC makers anonymously detailed price discounts and marketing incentives Microsoft lias used to encourage them to use its browser on their PCs instead of , v Netscape's. front-pag- Micron's quarterly profit plunges; shareholder value still increasing Create-A-Chec- Check-in-a-Se- browser market. "It is not unprecedented but it's difficult to show that a firm with 15 percent of a market is attempting to monopolize a market where another firm holds 75 percent of the same market," said Jonathan Jacobsen, an antitrust lawyer in the New York office of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld. "It's not your everyday case." The case would probably turn on a controversial issue of whether a company's monopoly position for one product helps it gain business for another product. The software industry, viewed busias an "increasing-returns- " ness because of the propensity of computer users to standardize around a program, has long been viewed by economists as a place where the issue is regularly played out. "This case, and the very high public profile of the companies, presents that controversial legal doctrine in fairly stark terms," Jacobsen said. Microsoft has maintained Netscape's accusations are an attempt to divert attention from the release of a Microsoft browser program that matched many of the qualities of Netscape's product. William Neukom, Microsoft's senior vice president for law and By EVAN RAMSTAD AP Business Writer Performance of key stock markets NYSE DOWflndustrials) 1 MlliAll) monosolizinq internet rn oil "Ryder is continuing to change in becoming more of a logistics and transportation services company," Burns said. Ryder wants to focus on long-term contractual relationships with corporate customers. It sees logistics business, managing customers' supply and distribution chains, as a particular growth area. Consumer truck rental, on the busiother hand, is a price-drive- n ness with little customer loyalty. Although Ryder controlled 30 percent of the rental market, profitability was uneven. The business produced $547 million in 1995 revenue. Ryder wouldn't disclose profitability, but analyst Edward Tavlin estimated it generated only $12.6 million in pretax profit last year. "Clearly, we did not make as much money in that business. The margins were lower and it was capital intensive," Burns said. "It really did not fit the strategic focus of the company as we continue to change it." Ryder shares rose $1.13, to $30.75, a high. "I think they've done what they said they intended to do and I'm very pleased," said Tavlin of Fahne-stoc- k & Co. in Hallandale. Burns said Ryder is considering using the sale proceeds to buy back stock, pay down debt or invest in its logistics business. Ryder posted 1995 revenues of $5.1 billion and net income of $148 million, or $1.86 per share. After the sale to Questor, Ryder will continue to provide fleet 52-we- maintenance and will handle the sale of used vehicles. "There will be a strong ongoing cooperative relationship." between Ryder and Questor. said Jay Alix. Questor's managing principal. Alix was chief executive of National Car Rental from 1993 to 1995. He described the Ryder consumer rental business as "basically a solid company, with strong management, employees and dealers." and said "no radical changes are going to occur overnight." The division employs about 650 people, incljding 175 in Miami. Alix said that the company would continue to be in Miami and that current management would remain in place. head-quart- S West: New rules unfair to local Bells DENVER (AP) The president of U S West Communications Inc. said the company will stop building telephone lines if a new law opening competition in the local market gives competitors an economic edge. "This is a critical issue for U S West, and I believe it's a critical issue for all the people who live in the West," Sol Trujillo said Wednesday in an interview with the Rocky J Mountain News. allow will A new federal law and other phone companies to enter local markets where monopolies have existed. The Federal Communications Commission has established maximum rates that companies such as U S West can charge competitors for an "interconaccess to U S West's lines service assigned by the FCC is $14.97 per month per telephone line, but U S West spends $30 when fixed costs are included, Trujillo said. nect" charge. The Colorado Public Utilities Commission could override the FCC's interconnect charge after its own study. But PUC spokeswoman Barbara Fernandez said it has been difficult to long-distan- ce close to Trujillo said the rate doesn'4-com- e covering costs. The interconnect charge for basic residential "Why would you build any more of those lines, if it costs $30 and you're selling them for $14?" Trujillo said. "Nobody is going to build at those kinds of prices. We'll let somebody else invest and then we'll go after their customers after they've made the investment." Competitors will skim the more lucrative commercial business, said Trujillo, leaving U S West to serve residential customers without the business customers to help subsidize residential service. pin down an accurate cost. "There's real disagreement among the par- ties what the rates should be and what the elei ; ments cost," she said. "They (U S West offu; cials) say business rates are subsidizing resi'r.; dential rates, and that's never been proven l before this commission." AT&T Corp. denies that it will ignore resi dential service after gaining access to local neU'. . works. " "We've said all along that our offering will ' be across the board, to businesses and resi? dences," said AT&T spokesman Randy Shields; "We won't exclude rural areas. We want to serve everybody." However, U S West has advertised a stated; ment by AT&T chairman Robert Allen that says the company will focus on "concentrated markets in major cities with concentrations of business customers." . ' |