News in brief

Ex-manager at Tyson sentenced for fraud

A former manager at a Tyson Foods plant in Emporia, Kan., has been sentenced to 27 months in prison for a fraud scheme that cost the company more than $416,000.

David John Ranger was sentenced Wednesday after pleading guilty in April to one count of wire fraud, according to documents filed in U.S. District Court in Kansas. He was ordered to pay $416,000 in restitution, half of which was paid during his hearing this week, and to be on supervised release for three years after he is released from prison.

In the scheme, Ranger used company credit cards to divert money from Tyson into a fictitious account for personal expenses for nearly seven years, federal prosecutors said.

He was responsible for buying equipment, goods and services for plant maintenance between January 2013 to September 2019. He was issued two company credit cards to make the purchases.

Prosecutors said he created a fictitious company -- "Electric Motor Repair Service" -- and claimed it was doing work for Tyson. The funds were later deposited into Ranger's personal bank accounts.

Ranger resigned in 2019 after Tyson questioned one of the purchases.

-- Nathan Owens

Caterpillar revenue jumps in 2nd quarter

Rising demand for machinery fueled sales at Caterpillar during the second quarter as the rollout of vaccines helped to revive construction projects.

Revenue was $12.89 billion, up from $10 billion, which exceeded the $12.41 billion that Wall Street was expecting, according to a survey by Zacks Investment Research.

Construction sales spiked 40% on both rising volumes and prices.

The construction industry has been pulled in different directions over the past year, with the global spread of covid-19 freezing activity while simultaneously driving demand for housing higher as people sought new places outside urban centers.

Prices for U.S. homes rose faster in May than they have in 17 years. The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller 20-city home price index soared 17% in May on top of a 15% jump in April.

For the three months that ended June 30, Caterpillar Inc. earned $1.41 billion, or $2.56 per share. A year earlier it earned $458 million, or 84 cents per share.

Adjusted profit at the Deerfield, Ill., company was $2.60, excluding restructuring costs. This topped the $2.38 per share Wall Street predicted.

Caterpillar shares fell $5.81, or 2.7%, to close at $206.75.

-- The Associated Press

State index drops to 649.01, off 1.19

The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, closed Friday at 649.01, down 1.19 points.

The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.

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