Valley-Area Stocks Didn’t Keep Pace With Key Indexes in 1993 : Prices: Index shows 6.5% increase for 105 local companies. But Nasdaq composite figure rose 14.8%.
It didn’t pay nearly as much to invest in local small-company stocks in 1993 as it did the previous two years.
Stocks in the San Fernando, Santa Clarita and Conejo valleys and Ventura County performed less well than the national stock market last year, reflecting the lingering Southern California recession.
The index of 105 Valley-area stocks, which mostly represent smaller companies, rose 6.5% in 1993, according to Media General Financial Services, a Richmond, Va., firm that compiles the index for The Times.
That was roughly in line with the 7.1% rise last year in the Standard & Poors 500 composite index, the benchmark index of the nation’s largest companies. But the Dow Jones average of 30 industrials rose 13.7% last year, and the Nasdaq composite index rose 14.8%. The Nasdaq index, which includes about 4,300 companies, is considered the stock market’s broadest measure of small-company issues.
The price increases registered by local stocks that did perform well in 1993 were enough to nudge the Valley index higher, even though gainers only slightly outnumbered losers. Of the 91 stocks that traded all year, 50 issues advanced in price, while 41 fell.
On Wall Street, last year was a strong one for companies having their initial public stock offering (IPOs). A total of 14 Valley-area companies went public in the past 12 months.
One strong performer was Iwerks Entertainment Inc., a Burbank company that recently unveiled its first virtual-reality attraction. It went public in October at $18 a share and closed the year at $26.75, a 49% increase.
The area’s best performing stock last year was Players International, a Calabasas-based casino operator, whose stock rose 296%, to $24.75 a share at year’s end. Players opened its second riverboat casino last month in Lake Charles, La. The company also operates a riverboat casino out of Metropolis, Ill., which has been open about a year.
In its fiscal second quarter that ended Sept. 30, Players earned a profit of $3.9 million on $20.3 million of revenue from its riverboat gambling operations. In the same period a year ago, Players had a net loss of $1.4 million from discontinued operations related to closing its discount travel service.
Players had struggled to sell memberships in the service, called Players Club and aimed at medium-stakes gamblers. But in February, it stopped marketing the club and teamed up with celebrity Merv Griffin to launch the Metropolis riverboat casino.
In another sharp reversal, motor-home maker Rexhall Industries Inc. saw its stock rise 157% in the past 12 months and closed the year at $6.75. Rexhall, based in Saugus, benefited from introducing two new motor-home models and expanding its dealer network. The company rebounded from a disastrous 1992 to post a $448,000 profit for this year’s first half, compared with a net loss of $125,000 in the same period last year.
Another big winner in 1993 was Dolco Packaging Corp., a Sherman Oaks manufacturer of plastic packaging products. Its stock surged 157% to finish the year at $22.50 a share as its profits soared from several new products. For the nine months ended Sept. 30, Dolco’s earnings more than doubled, to $2.9 million, on an 8% increase in sales, to $46.2 million. A year earlier, the company earned $1.4 million on $42.6 million in sales.
Two financial concerns, CU Bancorp and Foothill Group, were also among the top 10 gainers. CU Bancorp’s stock closed the year at $6.50 a share, double its price a year ago. The bank, which has been struggling from the effects of the recession, has refocused its attention on mid-sized business clients while reducing its non-performing real estate loans. As part of that strategy, CU sold its mortgage-banking division to Republic Bancorp of Ann Arbor, Mich., in November.
Foothill Group saw its stock jump 96% last year to close at $16.63. The company, with dual headquarters in Agoura Hills and Los Angeles, is involved in commercial lending, invests in troubled companies and manages $650 million of other investors’ money. Foothill recently spun off its thrift, which had been dragging down its profit.
The area’s worst performing stock in 1993 was THQ Inc., a Calabasas video-game maker, whose stock fell 78% for the year and closed at 78 cents a share. THQ has been struggling with costs related to developing new products as well as having to increase its reserves for product markdowns and allowances.
Other local companies that lost considerable ground in the latest 12 months included Voice Powered Technology International Inc., a Canoga Park maker of voice-activated VCR programming devices that went public in 1992. Voice-Powered’s stock sank 42% last year and closed 1993 at $4.44 a share. Last year Philips Consumer Electronics Corp., the giant Dutch electronics concern, agreed to market Voice Powered’s VCR device under Philips’ Magnavox brand. But profits have still been elusive.
Voice Powered posted a third-quarter net loss of $3.1 million on sales of $2.2 million. In the same period a year ago, Voice Powered posted a net loss of $1.3 million on $237,000 of sales.
In August, Michael Bissonnette, founder of Voice Powered, stepped down as chief executive of the company. He was succeeded by Edward M. Krakauer, Voice Powered’s chief operating officer since 1991.
But profits alone do not control the price of a stock. Among the poorest performing local stocks last year was Amgen Inc., the Thousand Oaks-based biotechnology concern, whose stock fell 30% to close 1993 at $49.50 a share. Even though analysts expect Amgen to earn a record profit of about $350 million for its fiscal 1993 year, most biotechnology stocks were hammered last year.
10 Biggest Regional Stock Winners for 1993
Closing Percent price on change for Stock 12/31/93 full year Line of business Players International $24.75 +296 Entertainment Dolco Packaging $22.50 +157 Packages Rexhall Industries $6.75 +157 Motor Homes Superior Industries $42.75 +127 Wheels CU Bancorp $6.50 +100 Banking Foothill Group $16.63 +96 Financial services Harman International $28.75 +89 Audio products Xircom $17.00 +84 Computer components Unico American $7.63 +65 Insurance Dick Clark Productions $6.50 +63 Entertainment
Note: Excludes stocks whose Dec. 31, 1992, price was below $2.00 a share
Source: Media General Financial Services Inc., Richmond, Va.
10 Biggest Regional Stock Losers for 1993
Closing Percent price on change for Stock 12/31/93 full year Line of business THQ Inc. $0.78 -78 Video games RKS Financial Group $1.13 -75 Financial services Fortune Petroleum $2.31 -62 Oil Hamburger Hamlet $8.38 -54 Restaurants Ventura Co National Bancorp $2.00 -45 Banking Voice Powered Technology $4.44 -42 Electronics House of Fabrics $8.00 -41 Fabrics Citadel Holding $11.75 -41 S&L; Holding Co. Harmony Holdings $3.56 -38 TV Commercials Tekelec $5.75 -36 Telecommunications
Note: Excludes stocks whose Dec. 31, 1992, price was below $2.00 a share
Source: Media General Financial Services Inc., Richmond, Va.
