OTHER NEWS - Sept. 5, 1996

Rubbermaid to Buy Graco: The maker of plastic and rubber products said it agreed to buy Graco Children’s Products Inc. for $320 million in cash, but Rubbermaid Inc.’s stock fell after it warned that its sales and earnings for the latest quarter will be comparable with those of a year ago. Wooster, Ohio-based Rubbermaid said it was buying Graco, a manufacturer of infant strollers, portable play yards and other infant products, from a private group of investors. News of the acquisition of Elverson, Pa.-based Graco failed to spark enthusiasm for Rubbermaid’s stock, which plunged $3.625 to $22.875 on the New York Stock Exchange. In the third quarter of 1995, Rubbermaid earned $50.3 million, 32 cents a share, on sales of $641.5 million.