Reported by Star-Bulletin staff & wire
Monday, October 12, 1998
Calif. telecom firm buys isle company
A California telecommunications company today said it has acquired the assets of Hawaii-based Access Communications.Magellan Network Systems, a privately held company based in Sunnyvale, said it paid stock and assumed certain Access debt for the assets. No purchase price was disclosed.
The company said it will retain Access' Kailua facility.
Access' billing and business management system will boost Magellan's telecom offerings, which includes products targeted to entrepreneurs operating phone-card systems, Magellan said.
Officials with both companies could not be reached for comment this morning.
Gannett income rises 16% on ad growth
ARLINGTON, Va. -- Gannett Co., the largest U.S. newspaper publisher, said third-quarter earnings rose 16 percent as strong advertising revenue at its newspapers offset higher newsprint costs and weakness in TV advertising.Net income at the owner of USA Today and the Honolulu Advertiser rose to $176.5 million, or 62 cents a share, from $152.5 million, or 53 cents in the year-ago period. The results met the average estimate of analysts surveyed by First Call Corp.
Gannett continued to generate strong gains in lucrative classified advertising, which offset a 15 percent increase in newsprint costs, one of its largest expenses. Growth at its broadcast division was tempered by the General Motors Corp. strike, which caused the automaker to cut ad spending.
The Arlington, Va.-based company, which owns 75 daily newspapers and operates 21 TV stations and cable-TV systems, said operating cash flow rose 8 percent to $389.7 million.
Cash flow is a key measure of media companies' performance, because it affects their ability to make payments on the high levels of debt that many carry.
Chrysler Corp. performs 'unbelievably,' gains 55%
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Increased sales of profitable new models helped Chrysler Corp. generate a 55 percent increase in third-quarter earnings and set a company record for the period, the automaker announced today.Chrysler's profit totaled $682 million, or $1.02 a diluted share, for the three months ended Sept. 30. That compared with $441 million, or 65 cents a share, during the third quarter of 1997.
The performance far exceeded expectations of Wall Street analysts. The average estimate of 15 analysts surveyed by First Call Corp. last week was 87 cents a share.
"They performed unbelievably," said analyst Mark Rowen of Salomon Smith Barney. "They blew through the Street consensus. It was a great quarter."
Philippine Air suspends international plans
MANILA -- Philippine Airlines announced today it was indefinitely suspending a plan to resume international flights at the request of potential investors.The debt-laden airline resumed domestic flights last Wednesday after a 13-day shutdown caused by disagreements with its largest labor union over a management recovery plan.
The flag-carrier was scheduled to resume flights to Hong Kong, Tokyo, Los Angeles and San Francisco on Thursday and gradually add flights to seven other destinations in Asia and the Middle East.
The airline said in a statement the plan to resume international flights was being postponed indefinitely at the request of potential investors, who have been studying the airline's records the past week. It did not elaborate.
The airline's chief financial officer, Jimmy Bautista, said at least three investors were involved in the talks: Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific Airways, Northwest Airlines Corp. and Singapore Airlines Ltd.
See expanded coverage in today's Honolulu Star-Bulletin.
See our [Search] [Info] section for subscription information.