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Business Briefs

Reported by Star-Bulletin staff & wire

Monday, April 3, 2000

Architects Hawaii picks new leader

Architects Hawaii Ltd. has appointed one of its principals, David A. Miller, as president and chief executive officer.

Miller joined the firm in 1971 and was promoted to principal in 1975. In 1981, he set up a Hong Kong office to lead Architects Hawaii's expansion into Asia. As president, he succeeds N. Robert Hale, who was named vice chairman and remains a principal. The company said it is repositioning itself for continued growth after 54 years in business. The firm also made six of its top employees into principals. They are Lloyd T. Arakaki, also named chief operating officer, Charles K.Y. Chan, Matthew W. Gilbertson, Arturo M. Lucio, Bettina Mehnert and Tom Young.

Bell Atlantic, GTE to be called Verizon

NEW YORK -- Bell Atlantic Co., which is buying GTE Corp., said today that the name of the new merged company will be Verizon.

The deal needs regulatory approval from the FCC and is expected to close in midyear. GTE is the parent of Hawaiian Tel.

The company's said Verizon (pronounced vurr-EYE-zon) was chosen from more than 8,500 possible names., It comes from the Latin word "veritas," which means truth, and "horizon," which "signifies the possibilities ahead," according to the companies.

Island Air allowed more Maui flights

WAILUKU -- Island Air will be able to schedule additional flights for Kapalua-West Maui Airport now that airstrip operations have been extended to 6:30 p.m. Flight operations had been restricted to half an hour after sunrise to half an hour before sunset. Island Air President Neil Takekawa said the new 6:30 p.m. curfew will allow the carrier to standardize its schedule and to offer additional late-afternoon flights. Island Air had been averaging seven flights a day at the airport.

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Of Mutual Concern

News for mutual fund investors

Science, tech led way in volatile first quarter

NEW YORK -- Science and technology funds once again outperformed all other mutual fund sectors during the first quarter of 2000. But as demand for technology stocks has eased since the end of 1999, so too have the phenomenal recent performance numbers of tech-focused mutual funds. While tech funds extended their dominance in the first quarter, their gains were a far cry from the triple-digit returns investors have grown accustomed to.

Science and technology funds rose an average of 15.9 percent through March 30, according to preliminary figures provided by Lipper Inc., a New York company that tracks mutual fund performance. At that rate, the group will grow an average of more than 60 percent for the year. Not bad, but a far cry from the 132 percent gains averaged in 1999.

As recently as March 23, science and technology funds were up an average of 30.3 percent, according to Lipper. But a huge selloff in technology stocks last week cut those gains nearly in half.

Health and biotechnology funds rose an average of 13.6 percent for the quarter, benefiting from the sudden popularity of biotech stocks, as investors searched for the next hot sector. The sharp turnaround in the science and technology sector late in the quarter seemingly lent credence to warnings issued recently by several high profile industry professionals, all of whom have decried a shift away from long-term investing to one that seeks short-term profits by chasing hot sectors.

Vanguard Group Chairman John Brennan, for example, has been outspoken in his efforts to encourage investors to diversify their portfolios and return to a long-term approach. "People chase yesterday's performers regularly, but it's a losers' game," Brennan said.

Growth stock funds also performed well in the first quarter, primarily because they are laced with technology stocks.

Growth funds that focus on midsize companies fared best, rising an average of 14.1 percent. Small company growth funds rose 13.1 percent, and large company growth funds gained 7 percent, according to Lipper.

On a negative note, Japanese and Pacific funds fell during the first quarter, reversing course from late 1999, when those same funds were outperforming their international competitors based on the belief that the Japanese and Asian economies were recovering from the financial crisis that swept the region in 1998. Japanese funds were down an average of 4.9 percent, and Pacific Region funds fell 2 percent, Lipper reported.

Monument Internet Fund names new manager

BETHESDA, Md. -- Monument Funds Group has named Daiwa Securities Group Inc.'s Bob Grandhi to replace Alexander Cheung as manager of Monument Internet Fund, last year's No. 1 Internet fund. Cheung, who piloted the fund to a 273 percent return in 1999, said he left Monument last month to start his own firm, Long Bow Capital Management LLC. Monument also named Grandhi, a technology analyst and portfolio manager for more than 20 years, executive vice president and chief investment officer of the 26-month-old fund group.

Morningstar Inc. analyst Christopher Traulsen said Cheung's departure deals a blow to Monument. "I think it's a big problem, because they really only had Cheung and (J. Michael) Gallipo as portfolio managers and Cheung ran two of the funds, the medical sciences and the Internet fund, and they have publicized him heavily as sort of their rising star," Traulsen said.