LITTLE ROCK — QUOTE OF THE DAY
“I’m surprised by the level of enthusiasm for sustainable recovery, given that we’re in the early stages of an economic decline that could go on for years.”
Howard Wheeldon,
senior strategist BGC Partners in London Article, 1DMortgage rates hit new low at 4.56%
NEW YORK - Mortgage rates fell to a record low for the fourth time in five weeks. But low rates haven’t been enough to lift a struggling housing market.
The average rate for 30-year fixed loans this week was 4.56 percent, down from 4.57 last week, mortgage company Freddie Mac, the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp., said Thursday. That’s the lowest since Freddie Mac began tracking rates in 1971.
The last time home-loan rates were lower was during the 1950s, when most mortgages were for 20 or 25 years.
The rate on the 15-year fixed loan dropped to 4.03 percent, down from 4.06 percent last week and is the lowest on records dating back to 1991.
Rates have fallen since the spring. Investors worried about the European debt crisis have shifted money into the safety of Treasury bonds. That has forced those yields down. Mortgage rates tend to track yields on Treasury debt.
But low rates have yet to spark home sales, and refinancing activity remains moderate. Rates have hovered near historic lows for more than a year, so many people have already taken advantage of them to buy or refinance a home.
And many of those who haven’t wouldn’t qualify for a loan. They either owe more than their homes are worth, have shaky credit or have lost their jobs.
Rates on five-year adjustable-rate mortgages averaged 3.79 percent, down from 3.85 percent a week earlier. Rates on one-year adjustable-rate mortgages fell to an average of 3.70 percent from 3.74 percent.
USA Truck reports U-turn to profit
USA Truck Inc. marked a return to profitability Thursday with positive second-quarter results after losing money for the past five quarters.
The Van Buren-based carrier reported net income of $900,000, or 9 cents per share, for the quarter that ended June 30, compared with a net loss of $1.15 million, or 11 cents per share, for the same quarter last year.
The company beat the average earnings estimate of zero cents per share from five analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters.
Total revenue rose to $113.67 million, up 23 percent from $92.38 million in the second quarter of 2009.
In a news release Thursday, USA Truck President and Chief Executive Cliff Beckham said the gains were achieved through “disciplined execution of our long-term strategic plan, and aided by an improving operating environment and the sale of a fuel contract.”
Beckham said one of USA Truck’s priorities for the rest of 2010 is to increase its tractor utilization, or miles per tractor per week. With that goal hampered by a tight market for qualified drivers, the company plans to intensify its driver recruiting and retention efforts.
USA Truck’s shares gained 49 cents, or 3.29 percent, to close Thursday at $15.37 on the Nasdaq. Its stock has traded between $10.78 and $18.79 in the past year.
Windows sales lift Microsoft income
SEATTLE - Microsoft Corp. said Thursday that its net income surged 48 percent in the most recent quarter, the latest sign that businesses are again spending money on technology.
Strong sales of Windows, particularly to Microsoft’s corporate customers, helped elevate results in the fiscal fourth quarter. Microsoft said it has sold more than 175 million licenses of the newest version, Windows 7, since it went on sale last year.
Big businesses stopped replacing aging computers, servers and software during the worst of the recession. Last quarter, the software maker said it saw signs that its corporate customers were starting to spend again.
This quarter’s results, which follow a strong report from chip-maker Intel Corp., show the trend has continued. Microsoft Chief Financial Officer Peter Klein said billings for its multiyear agreements with big companies increased in the quarter.
For the April-June period, Microsoft’s net income jumped to $4.52 billion, or 51 cents per share, from $3.05 billion, or 34 cents per share, last year.
Revenue rose 22 percent to $16.04 billion, from $13.1 billion in the same period a year ago.
The results were stronger than Wall Street had expected.
Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters had forecast net income of 45 cents per share on $15.3 billion in revenue.
Searcy cancer center breaks ground
SEARCY - A new cancer-treatment center is under construction in Searcy.
White County Medical Center said the facility will be a comprehensive cancer center that will offer a variety of imaging services and treatments.
The center will be connected to the Central Arkansas Radiation Therapy Institute of Searcy. Services will include radiation and chemotherapy.
The White County Medical Foundation has raised about $1 million of its $3.2 million fundraising goal.
The hospital has partnered with White County Oncology and Radiology Associates to create the center.
Dell to pay $100 million in SEC deal
Dell Inc. agreed to pay $100 million and Chief Executive Officer Michael Dell will pay another $4 million to settle U.S. regulatory claims that the company used fraudulent accounting to meet earnings targets.
The computer maker and its founder failed to tell investors about “exclusivity payments” received from Intel Corp. in exchange for not using products made by the chipmaker’s main rival, the Securities and Exchange Commission said Thursday in an e-mail statement. Those payments allowed Dell to reach its earnings targets from 2001 to 2006, the SEC said.
“Accuracy and completeness are the touchstones of public company disclosure under the federal securities laws,” SEC Enforcement Director Robert Khuzami said in the agency’s statement. “Michael Dell and other senior Dell executives fell short of that standard repeatedly over many years, and today they are held accountable.”
Former CEO Kevin Rollins and James Schneider, the company’s former chief financial officer, agreed to pay fines of $4 million and $3 million, respectively. Dell and the executives neither admitted nor denied the allegations in settling the case.
“We’re pleased to have reached this final settlement with the SEC and to be able to focus all our efforts on helping our customers succeed,” Dell spokesman David Frink said.
Calls to John Savarese, an attorney representing Michael Dell; Michael Mann, an attorney for Rollins; and Neil Eggleston, another lawyer, were not immediately returned.
Business, Pages 26 on 07/23/2010