Honolulu Star-Bulletin Business Briefs /2005/09/22/

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NATION
United's parent posts $30M loss for August

ELK GROVE VILLAGE, Ill. » UAL Corp., United Airlines' parent company, reported a $30 million net loss for August yesterday as a result of continuing high costs for its 33-month-old bankruptcy reorganization and the spike in fuel prices.

The company said in its monthly operating report filed with U.S. Bankruptcy Court that it had an operating profit last month of $80 million versus a $12 million operating loss a year earlier. That gain came despite $125 million in increased jet fuel spending due to a 43 percent jump in fuel prices since August 2004.

The nation's second-largest airline, which is targeting an emergence from federal bankruptcy protection in February, recently forecast that it will make a net profit next year for the first time since 2000. But the forecast is based on average oil prices of $50 a barrel, well below yesterday's closing price of $66.80.

Delta pilot exodus drains pension

ATLANTA » A continuing exodus of Delta Air Lines Inc. pilots has drained the pension plan to the point where future lump sum payouts to retirees by the bankrupt carrier may be in jeopardy, according to the union.

The chairman of the pilot union's executive committee, John Malone, said in a letter to members Tuesday night there is a significant likelihood that lump sum payments will not be immediately available to pilots who are considering retirement on or after Oct. 1.

Part of the reason, Malone said, is the high number of pilots who have retired, many of them early, over the last 21 months.

There were 202 pilots who retired Sept. 1, two weeks before Delta's bankruptcy filing, and more that 2,300 have put in their papers since January 2003, Malone said.

McDonald's plans Chipotle IPO

OAK BROOK, Ill. » McDonald's Corp., the world's largest fast-food company, said yesterday it intends to spin off a minority stake in its Chipotle Mexican Grill brand in order to fuel its growth and create value for its shareholders.

The company told analysts at the start of a two-day meeting at its headquarters that it plans to file for an initial public offering involving Chipotle by the end of October and expects to launch the IPO in the first quarter of 2006.

The announcement comes eight months after it first raised the possibility of spinning off the growing 400-restaurant operation and plowing much of the proceeds into its namesake-brand restaurants.

It also follows a similar move by rival Wendy's International Inc., which said in July that it plans to sell a portion of its Tim Hortons doughnut and coffee chain.

McDonald's also said its board raised the company's annual dividend by 22 percent, boosting the total dividend payout to more than $825 million. The 2005 increase raises the annual cash payout to 67 cents per share, nearly tripling the dividend since 2002. The dividend is payable Dec. 1 to shareholders of record Nov. 15.

Bed Bath & Beyond profit rises 18 percent

UNION, N.J. » Bed Bath & Beyond Inc., the largest U.S. home furnishings retailer, said second-quarter profit rose 18 percent, helped by sales of back-to-school items.

Net income increased to $141.4 million, or 47 cents a share, from $120 million, or 39 cents, a year earlier. Revenue in the period ended Aug. 27 climbed 12 percent to $1.43 billion.

The retailer also captured back-to-school shoppers by offering a college registry on its Web site that sells products ranging from $9.99 microfleece lap desks to $169.99 Nautica quilts.

Starbucks plans first stock split since 2001

SEATTLE » Starbucks Corp. will split its shares 2-for-1 for the first time since 2001 after the stock more than doubled.

The split will be payable Oct. 21 and is the fifth since the largest U.S. coffee-shop chain's initial public offering in 1992.

Starbucks' shares have soared as the company has increased profit for four consecutive years by adding new drinks and opening new stores.

Aircraft costs bleed Morgan Stanley profit

NEW YORK » Morgan Stanley became the first Wall Street firm to report lower third-quarter earnings, dragged down by $1 billion in costs for the planned sale of an aircraft-leasing unit.

Net income declined 83 percent to $144 million, or 13 cents a share, in the three months ended Aug. 31 from $837 million, or 76 cents, a year earlier.