|
|
Kit
Menkin’s Leasing News www.leasingnews.org Wednesday, February
20, 2001 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GE/Chicago Office Alleged “Sick Out”
Fitch to Rate Leasing/Finance Companies
Leverage Leasing, Omaha, Nebraska News---Confirmed
H. Frank Striplin & Merrill Lynch.--Correction
Comdisco Extension Approved
20:02, 20/02, 2002 Bring
Your Wife or Girl Friend...and cash ( Las Vegas Conference ) Loan
Syndications and Trading Assoc.. Launches Glossary Terms
Olympic Games/Report from a Leasing Company in Salt Lake City, Utah
Len Baccaro Joins AEF---Baccaro-Baccaro Leasing
2001 Bankruptcy up 19 percent
Providian Financial's chief financial officer resigns
Sunrise International Leasing Reports Record Earnings Trinity Industries Subsidiary Issues $170 Million in Sr. Secured Notes (not to be confused with Trinity Capital, San Francisco) Largest network of Peterbilt heavy-duty truck dealerships in North America, John Deere---Rush Enterprises—Reports “losses” Mellon/ Vinings Management Announce Strategic Alliance
Housing construction rises 6.3 percent in January
highest level in nearly two years ###Denotes Press Release GE/Chicago Office Alleged “Sick Out” In reference to the article on the new office located in Chicago for Colonial Pacific-they are not even here yet...not that it wouldn't have happened. You have a lot of people in the Chicago office who just don't care anymore...this was the hardest transition that we had to make, in fact, I think we have people here who came to this company when it was privately owned by Perry Schwartz as First United Leasing. You know, we are very upset by what GE has come in and done. When Mellon Leasing owned us we still functioned as we had in the past (of course some minor changes), but overall it was still a profitable company...our business has died since GE came in, we are all sure that one day we will be out of a job thanks to GE. Others have had experience with GE. Some come from companies bought out by GE and they have been let go before. When this office was Mellon Leasing it was a good happy group...now as GE Capital it is not the same...GE is nothing more than a group of young entrepreneurs who do nothing more than change the way they function daily...care for the customer...not there! GROW! I believe is Jim Kelly's new motto...through acquisition only is the obvious! As far as GE not coming out and responding to the Chicago/Portland rumor, I’m not sure, maybe their just too busy making acquisitions, or changing the way we will do things TOMORROW. ( Name With Held )
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Fitch
Ratings Teleconference: Finance and Leasing Companies Today,
Wednesday, at 11:00 a.m. EST, Fitch Ratings' Finance Company Group will
host a teleconference to discuss the outlook for the finance, leasing
and credit card company industries. Among
the topics to be discussed in the teleconference are Fitch's rationale
behind recent rating actions in the finance company universe, along
with changes facing the industry following increased funding pressure
brought on by financing troubles at several large issuers. A question
and answer session will follow. Participants
should call 1-888-542-8839 and international participants should dial
1-706-634-1731. All participants should dial in five minutes prior to
the 11:00 a.m. EST start time and give the title of the call - 'Fitch'.
The pass code is '3295587'. Interested
parties who are not available for the teleconference will be able to
hear a replay of the call starting on Feb. 20 at 2:00 p.m. EST, and
running until Feb. 25, 2002 at 12:00 a.m. EST. Domestic listeners should
dial 1-800-642-1687 and international listeners should dial 1-706-645-9291
and use the access code '3295587'. CONTACT:
Fitch
Ratings Thomas
Abruzzo, 212/908-0793 (New York) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Leverage
Leasing, Omaha, Nebraska News---Confirmed The
information on Leverage appears to be correct. I received a fax from
them
stating that they will not accept any new business effective 2/19/02.
They
will honor all approvals until expiration date. They mention that they
are
"getting their portfolio in order" and will re-enter the market
later this
year. I spoke with Mr. Haas on Friday and he made no mention of this
at all.
I wish them well. Alex
Alonso Bullslease@aol.com Bullseye
Financial Services. Here
is the official announcement: http://www.leasingnews.org/leverageleasingnotice.gif (
Thank you, readers, as I did received many copies of
the fax. Here are some reactions. editor ). Reactions: Leverage
has always been fair and more than upright when it came to dealing
with their brokers. I've received more than
one call from Leverage advising me that an old customer of mine wanted
to
do another deal. As a matter of fact they called me on several occasions
to
give me leads they had acquired from people in my region. Although
their windows
were pretty tight lately and we haven't worked with them very much,
we
only wish them the best and look forward to working with them in the
future. Bob
Lydon Atlantic
Financial Services 1120
N. Main Street Pleasantville,
NJ 08232 (800)
691-2009 www.atlanticfinancial.net ___
Before
everyone starts jumping on Leverage Leasing I would like to say it's been
a pleasure working with Jay Hass and his staff. We have always found them
responsive to our inquires, fair in their credit decisions, and timely in
their fundings. This
is a stressful time in the leasing business, and losing any funder can be
traumatic to a broker that has built his business off a funder's programs.
But no matter how stressful, let's not lose site of the fact that Leverage
Leasing served the broker community faithfully and well for many years.
They have not kept deposits, bounced checks, solicited our accounts, or
stiffed their brokers, which many others have. I
wish them well, hope they can overcome whatever problems caused their shutdown,
and will welcome them back, whenever that may be. Ted
Prichard, CLP President Smokey
Mountain Funding, Inc. 212
South Grove Street, Suite G Hendersonville,
NC 28792 Tel#
877-243-5974 Fax# 828-696-9772 Please
send to a colleague, as we are trying to build up our readership. Many do
not know about us. No banners, advertisements, and we are free. We
also help people get jobs.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Comdisco
Extension Approved Comdisco,
Inc. announced that the U.S. Bankruptcy Court approved the Company's
motion for an extension of the exclusive periods during which only Comdisco
may file a plan of reorganization and solicit acceptances for that plan
until April 15, 2002 and June 15, 2002, respectively. Correction
on Frank Striplin Joining Merrill Lynch Contrary
to what you said in today's Leasing News, Lyon Credit had no relationship
with Schwan or their Lyon Financial unit. Lyon Credit was originally
part of Credit Lyonnais, the French bank. You aren' t the first person
to get the two Lyon companies mixed up. I
am departing my Idaho home for Salt Lake City Tuesday afternoon. I
am a hockey
nut and will be seeing 7 Olympic hockey games in 5 days with Barbara
and
my son, including both men's and women's gold medal games. Go USA!
Hope my Salt Lake City trip is more successful than your Green Bay
trip. After the
closing ceremonies, we are coming back to Idaho for more skiing. Best
regards, Bruce
Kropschot BKropschot@aol.com Kropschot
Financial Services 116
Estuary Drive Vero
Beach, FL 32963 (772)
234-4544 ---
I
noticed your excerpt on Merrill Lynch hiring former Lyon Finance VP
H. Frank
Striplin into their organization. You then reference that this is the same
"Lyon Finance" that was a part of Schwans Food, and ultimately Manifest.
This is not true and needs clarification. The
"Lyons Finance" that he was a part of was actually Lyons Credit,
Inc., division
of Credit Lyonnais. This is NOT Lyon Financial Services, Inc., which
was the subsidiary of Schwans Sales Enterprises, Inc. Lyons Credit, Inc.
and Lyon Financial Services, Inc. are two totally separate, unrelated businesses
and should not be confused as being together. H.
Frank Striplin has never been a part of our organization nor have I
ever met him. Please
clarify this for your readers. Thanks! Tom
Landmark Director
of Operations US
Bancorp Manifest Funding Services 800-325-2236,
x. 7136 ---- RE:
H. Frank Striplin & Merrill Lynch. I
went to the web site to try and find a phone # or email address for
his division.
Could not locate it. Does anyone know how to contact them? I want
to see what their policy is on doing business with brokers.
( name with held ) try
312-499-3260 fax:
313-499-3260 __________________________________________________________________ -
20:02, 20/02, 2002 Also
Setting the Record Straight---Not the Last Time---One More 8.02pm
on February 20 this year will be an historic moment in time, yes, but
not the last time. It
will not be marked by the chiming of any clocks or the ringing of bells,
but at that precise time something will happen which has not occurred for
almost a thousand years. As
the clock ticks over from 8.01pm (20:01) on Wednesday, February 20, time
will, for sixty seconds only, read in perfect symmetry 2002, 2002, 2002,or
to be more precise - 20:02, 20/02, 2002. It will only happen one
more time. Before
the days of such a symmetrical pattern, before the days
of the digital watch and the 24-hour clock - at 10.01am on January 10, 1001. Also,
a more recent (and perhaps more interesting) time that it happened: 11:11
11/11 1111 And
of course if you allow for the US-conventional format of mm/dd there is
for instance: 12:21 12/21 1221 After
tomorrow, it will only happen again in the next 110 years:
21:12
21/12 2112 And
because the clock only goes up to 23.59, it is something that will never
happen again. The
hidden message here is that no minute will ever occur again. Each of
them
is precious and unique and must be enjoyed for what it is and what we
have
made of it.
( No, this was not a Sunday Sermon. editor ) ________________________________________________________________________ Bring
Your Wife or Girl Friend...and cash ( Las Vegas Conference ) Debbie,
Ginny The
joke part was in saying "wife OR girlfriend" inferring most
men had both.
In the 50's the men that went to Vegas brought their girlfriends with
them and left their wives at home. The emphasis is on the OR. It's
a
guy thing I guess. If he said Husband or Boyfriend it wouldn't have
been
the same. Woman have a much better reputation with respect to those
issues
then we men do. Also,
some things I've learned, just don't translate well in an e-mail.
Voice inflection is much more important than we imagine. I've run
into some interesting misunderstandings with e-mails. It's usually
pretty
innocent when it all gets sorted out though. Oh
well, hope to see you at the conference. Daryl Daryl
Warmbrand daryl@pyramidleasing.com ____ Well
having never been married and based just off experience with my married
friends (most of whom also have girlfriends in addition to wives), I
thought you meant just what you said; "Bring your wife OR your
girlfriend"
assuming most attendees probably have both. Guess
the jokes on me. I still thought it was funny and am so surprised at
the
controversy it seems to have started amongst our female ranks. I
forwarded that part of the e-mail to my girlfriend (who will be attending
with
me), she, like I was amused and excited to see that people (like us)
still
can have a laugh and a good time and not take everything so seriously
all
the time. Honestly speaking, she already knew we were going, and all
this
did was heighten her anticipation of the trip. She is not American
though.
She comes from a place where it is still fashionable to be a woman. "anonymous" ----- Love
what you are doing with Leasing News. I thought your joke regarding the
Las Vegas conference was funny, even if Debbie Monosson didn't; it is puzzling,
she usually has such a great sense of humor. As
you know, I am the President of the MidAmerica Association of Equipment Lessors
(MAEL) and would similarly like to promote participation in our upcoming
Association events through your publication, including the 18th Golf
Invitational and 4th Annual Warm-up Weekend which will be held in Chicago
May 18-20, 2002. This years Invitational is being held at Harborside
International, home to the 2002 SBC Senior Open (July 15-21). Last
years events had record participation of over 300 leasing and finance industry
stakeholders. To
be sure Debbie is happy, please note that leasing and finance industry participants,
their friends, their husbands and/or wives as well as all, or any,
of their girlfriends and/or boyfriends, if any, are all welcome!!! If anyone
was left out of that invitation, they are also welcome. What
do we need to do to have our information posted in
the Leasing News? Best
regards, Clyde
D. Cady President Facility
Capital 333
West Wacker Drive Suite
1750 Chicago,
IL 60606 cdcady@facilitycapital.com www.facilitycapital.com 312.541.6000
phone 312.541.1275
fax 312.399.9335
mobile (
We have the May 18-20 Tournament on our Meeting Calendar.
http://www.leasingnews.org/meetings.htm .
Please keep us informed. Any news we will be glad to print. editor
) LSTA
LAUNCHES GLOSSARY OF TERMS The
Loan Syndications and Trading Association and the Loan Market Association--trade
groups representing banks and other interested parties involved
in the primary and secondary U.S. and European loan markets, have created
a "Glossary of Terms for Transfers of Interests in Loans."
Many of the
New York/U.S. and English law terms relating to loan trading sound identical
but may have a different legal effect, a spokesperson for the groups
says. The
glossary will help ensure the correct understanding of the legal
terminology that is used in the two markets. Along with listing the definitions
of the New York/U.S. and English law terms, the publication also provides
a guide to their use in LSTA and LMA trading documents. The glossary
is available on the LSTA Web site (www.lsta.org) and on the LMA site
(www.lma.eu.com). For
those wishing information on funders, leasing companies, or associations
world wide: Leasing
World Yearbook 2001 In
this changing leasing world, one of the most often asked question is
"who will do a lease in Australia?" "The Philippines?"
There are very few foreign leasing companies who belong to local associations. The
best place to start is with the World Leasing Yearbook 2001. It is considered
the international reference book for the asset funding and easing industry.
This
is not advertising, although it definitely is a "plug" for
a great world leasing resource book. It features over 100 authoritative
articles by leading industry experts on international leasing and a
unique and comprehensive database of over 6,500 companies active in
the leasing market. In
addition, the book provides a concise overview of the principles of
leasing and a discussion of current trends and debates in the marketplace.There
is also a special report on the leasing software and 50 market. It also
has a ranking of the top 50 leasing markets by size worldwide. Profiles
on leasing in 50 regions: Africa
- Argentina - Australia - Austria - Bangladesh - Belgium - Brazil -
Canada - Chile - Colombia - Czech Republic - Denmark - Egypt - Estonia
- Finland - France - Germany - Ghana - Greece - Hong Kong - Hungary
- India - Indonesia - Ireland - Israel - Italy - Japan - Korea - Luxembourg
- Malaysia - Mexico - Morocco - Netherlands - New Zealand - Nigeria
- Norway - Pakistan - Panama - Philippines - Poland - Portugal - Russia
- Singapore - South Africa - Spain - Sri Lanka - Sweden - Switzerland
- Taiwan - Thailand - Turkey - United Kingdom - United States of America.
Database. The
most comprehensive database on the industry in the world. Lists of over
6,500 companies in total worldwide providing leasing services in each
country in alphabetical order. Companies that are general leasing companies,
specialist leasing companies (vehicles, computers, aircraft, vendor/sales
aid, containers, shipping, real estate etc.) merchant or investment
bankers, consultants, brokers, packagers, lawyers and accountants. We
list their names and addresses, telephone and facsimile numbers, at
least one contact name and title, and a summary of their leasing activities.
The
World Leasing Yearbook is the only annually-updated reference book on
leasing we have found. It is revised and updated each year it is internationally
acclaimed as the standard reference book on the subject. Cost
is $250 from: World Publication Service, 1 Maple Street, Unit 8A, East
Rutherford, NJ 07073 You
can e-mail for more information at wpsjb@aol.com Olympic
Games/Report from a Leasing Company in Salt Lake City, Utah I'm
really impressed with the way the Olympic committee put things together. The
City looks so spectacular with all the tall buildings decorated with skiers,
skaters, etc then all the special lighting effects. You've probably noticed
it in the night photos of the city that they show almost every night.
The TV really doesn't do the area justice - it's better than it appears
on the cameras. The
part that has been most difficult is the "beefed up" security.
We are grateful
that it's here, but it has a been a bit hard to deal with. For instance,
there is no public parking in any of the buildings. So in order to park
in our parking plaza we have to all but be fingerprinted and blood typed
to be sure we belong to the vehicle we are driving. And, we have had to
adjust our work hours to meet security's demands. We start at 7 am,
we can't
leave the building during the day and, we have to leave the buildings, for
the day, by 3pm. We
cannot have Federal Express come for a pick up after 11am
and we cannot have any deliveries of any kind to our office. Without
the parking facilities, we have had to provided inter-city transit to
get everyone
around the city and to the various venues. We have about a hundred city
transit buses that have been shipped in from Atlanta, Washington DC, Denver,
Maryland, etc. to help move the millions of people that are here for the
events. With all those buses and security vehicles, it takes about an hour
to leave our parking area. The
City center has been blocked off to all traffic. They have set up portable
buildings in the streets to house various ethnic restaurants, emergency
medical facilities, military and security stations. We have military
personnel walking the tops of all the buildings, with M-16's in hand,
in a effort to monitor the sidewalks and streets below. Many
smaller business about the city have really suffered with the loss of business
since their customers can't get to their stores and offices. I
have a friend who is an accountant. His office building was taken over
by the military.
He has to park 6 blocks away from his office and walk in. When the
weather is cold, he walks faster. He says he likes the exercise, but
leaves the
office at 3pm as he doesn’t want to walk in the dark and the cold. All
this military and security upgrade started about 2 weeks prior to the
onset of the Olympics. So, all these businesses have lost over a month
of income already and it's not over yet. It
has been a real experience but, we will all be glad when it's over and
we are
back to normal. I will email you a neat picture of Air Force One which was
taken when the President came for the opening ceremonies. Don’t
get me wrong, I love the Olympics, but I am really looking forward
to when it is over here in Salt Lake. People out of the area
don’t appreciate the total effort of everyone here. Have
a great day! (
name with held ) ###
################################## ############### LEN
BACCARO JOINS AMERICAN EQUIPMENT FINANCE LLC Len
Baccaro has joined American Equipment Finance LLC as a founding member.
Baccaro
has been in the leasing industry since 1987 and was a former owner of Independent
Capital Corp. (ICC) from 1990 -1998 which was then acquired by First
Sierra Financial, Inc. He was most recently a VP with American Express
Business Finance
and a member of the company's "President's Club", an honor
received for excellence
in sales production. American
Equipment Finance will be focused on providing top sales talent with
an environment that fosters self-development and rewards high achievement
with unmatched compensation in the leasing industry. Len
can be contacted at: 201-650-0743
mobile 908-542-9330
office ####
################################# ##################### (The
company was founded by Richard Baccaro, former Executive Vice-President at
American Express Business Finance/First Sierra/Sierra Cities since 1998. Perhaps
it would be more appropriate to call the company “ Baccaro-Baccaro
Leasing.” or maybe “ The Baccaro Brothers’ Leasing”
Getting these two brothers
together, should be a dynamic duo. editor) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2001 Bankruptcy
Filings Up 19 Pct The Associated
Press WASHINGTON
–– Bankruptcy filings by American consumers and businesses
jumped 19 percent in 2001, hitting a record high of 1,492,129 in a year
in which the economy slid into recession, according to data released
Tuesday. The filings
last year compared with 1,253,444 new bankruptcies filed in 2000 and
the previous record of 1,442,549 cases filed in 1998, data compiled
by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts show. Samuel
Gerdano, executive director of the American Bankruptcy Institute, a
group of bankruptcy judges, lawyers and experts, called 2001 "a
boom year for bankruptcies." "The
combination of record levels of consumer debt and an economic downturn
beginning in 2000 caused more families to face financial stress than
ever before," he said. It wasn't
immediately known how many of the bankruptcy filings came after the
Sept. 11 terror attacks in New York and Washington. The number
of new bankruptcies filed in the fourth quarter, from Oct. 1 through
Dec. 31, was 364,921, up 18 percent over the same period in 2000 and
the highest fourth quarter ever. The U.S.
economy officially was declared in late November to be in a recession.
The majority
of filings continued to be under Chapter 7 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code,
which allows people to dissolve their credit-card and other debts. Chapter
7 filings were 1,054,975, up 23 percent from 859,220 in 2000. In return
for having their debts erased, people in Chapter 7 cases often turn
their property over to a bankruptcy trustee, except for basic necessities
such as a car, clothing and work tools. Property with value is sold
to pay creditors. Debtors generally are allowed to keep some personal
items and possibly some of the equity in their home, depending on state
laws. The House
and Senate last year approved sweeping legislation to overhaul the bankruptcy
laws to make it harder to file under Chapter 7. President Bush has signaled
he would sign such legislation, but final passage has been stalled.
–––
On the
Net: Administrative
Office of the U.S. Courts: http://www.uscourts.gov
###
################################## ########################## “The
company is actively seeking to purchase equipment portfolios from manufacturers
or other financing companies. “
Additionally, SILC is actively seeking to develop new leasing Sunrise
International Leasing Corporation Reports Record 2001 Revenue and Net
Income
GOLDEN
VALLEY, -- Sunrise International
Despite the current challenging economic environment, which has not
The company also reported a $122,000,000 reduction in debt during the
year
Outlook
Despite the expected reduction in revenues, SILC expects to continue
to
The company also is seeking additional lines of credit and financing
About Sunrise International Leasing Corp
About King Capital Corp.
from the internet: This
Sunrise is coming up on a new day -- as a private equipment leasing
company. Sunrise primarily works with telecommunications, high technology,
and other capital equipment vendors to develop their own specialized
leasing and rental programs, which Sunrise markets. The company primarily
offers lease terms ranging from 24 to 36 months, but also offers short-term
leases (24 months or less). Cisco Systems, GE Capital, and Sun Microsystems
are the company's three major vendor partners. Sunrise also provides
computer leasing, software sales, and coin copier operations. Chairman
and CEO Peter King bought Sunrise International Leasing in 2000 through
his King Management organization. Vendor Leasing
Solutions for Sales and Success: http://www.sunriseleasing.com/ Private Label
Program and more: http://www.sunriseleasing.com/sitemap.asp ####
#################################### ######################## (
not be be confused with Trinity Capital of San Francisco, California
) Trinity
Industries, Inc.'s Leasing Subsidiary Issues $170 Million in Senior
Secured Notes
DALLAS-- Trinity Industries, Inc.(NYSE: TRN) announced that its wholly-owned leasing subsidiary, Trinity Industries Leasing Company, completed a private placement of $170 million of notes which are secured by certain of the subsidiary's leased railcars and are guaranteed by Trinity. Proceeds from the offering will be used to repay bank debt including a bridge loan used to fund the cash portion of the purchase price of Thrall Car Manufacturing Company.
"By adding long term debt with an average maturity of over five
years and
The securities will not be registered under the Securities Act of 1933
and
Trinity Industries, Inc., with headquarters in Dallas, Texas, is one
of ###
################################### ############## Rush Enterprises
Inc. Reports Fourth Quarter and Year End Results, and the Sale of Its
Retail Division's Internet and Catalogue Assets SAN ANTONIO--Rush
Enterprises Inc. (Nasdaq:RUSH), which operates the largest network of
Peterbilt heavy-duty truck dealerships in North America, John Deere
construction equipment dealerships in Texas and Michigan, and three
farm and ranch superstores (D&D), today announced results for the
quarter and year ended Dec. 31, 2001, and the sale of its retail division's
Internet and catalogue assets. In the
fourth quarter, the Company's gross revenues totaled $185.3 million,
a 12.3 percent decrease from gross revenues of $211.2 million reported
for the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, 2000. Net income for the quarter
increased to $580,000, or $0.08 per share, compared with a net loss
of $1.6 million, or $0.23 per share reported in the quarter ended Dec.
31, 2000. These results include $927,000 of pretax loss provision, recognized
during the fourth quarter of 2001, to record the impairment of the Company's
retail division's Internet and catalogue assets. The Company sold the
assets of this business Feb. 1, 2002. In addition to this loss provision,
the Internet and catalogue business recorded approximately $125,000
of pretax operating losses during the fourth quarter of 2001. Exclusive
of the Internet and catalogue business' operational and asset impairment
losses, the Company's net income, for the fourth quarter of 2001, was
$1.2 million or $0.17 per diluted share. Additionally, the Company recognized
truck valuation, pretax loss provisions of $300,000 and $1.25 million
during the fourth quarters of 2001 and 2000, respectively. For the
year ended Dec. 31, 2001, the Company's gross revenues totaled $784.3
million, a 12.5 percent decrease compared to gross revenues of $896.6
million reported during 2000. Net income for the years ended 2001 and
2000 was constant at approximately $3.3 million. Earnings per diluted
share for the year ended 2001 were $0.46, a 2.1 percent decrease from
$0.47 per diluted share reported during 2000. These results include
$927,000 of pretax loss provision, recognized during 2001, to record
the impairment of the Company's retail division's Internet and catalogue
assets. The Company sold the assets of this business Feb. 1, 2002. In
addition to this loss provision, the Internet and catalogue business
recorded approximately $1.0 million of pretax operating losses during
2001. Exclusive of the Internet and catalogue business' operational
and asset impairment losses, the Company's net income for 2001 was $4.4
million or $0.63 per diluted share. Additionally, the Company recognized
truck valuation, pretax loss provisions of $1.2 million and $4.0 million
during 2001 and 2000, respectively. The Company's
heavy-duty truck segment recorded revenues of $152.1 million in the
fourth quarter of 2001, compared to $170.2 million in the fourth quarter
of 2000. The Company delivered 989 and 391 new and used trucks, respectively,
during the fourth quarter of 2001 compared to 1,310 and 462 new and
used trucks, respectively, for the same period in 2000. Parts, service
and body shop sales increased 18.5 percent from $41.5 million to $49.2
million from the fourth quarter of 2000 to the fourth quarter of 2001.
The Company's
construction equipment segment recorded revenues of $20.4 million in
the fourth quarter of 2001, compared to $28.1 million in the fourth
quarter of 2000. New and used construction equipment unit sales revenue
decreased $7.3 million or 34.9 percent from the same period in 2000.
Parts and service sales increased 5.5 percent from $5.5 million to $5.8
million from the fourth quarter of 2000 to the fourth quarter of 2001.
Rental sales decreased from $1.4 million to $0.8 million, or 42.9 percent,
from the fourth quarter of 2000 to the fourth quarter of 2001. In announcing
the results, W. Marvin Rush, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of
Rush Enterprises, said, "We are very happy with our fourth quarter
and year end results given the condition of the truck and construction
equipment markets and in spite of the Internet and catalogue losses.
As indicated by our fourth quarter and year-end sales, the truck and
construction equipment markets remain soft. The oversupply of used trucks
continues to be the main reason for the decline in our truck markets.
The heavy-duty truck industry as a whole, expects to deliver approximately
110,000 new trucks in the United States during 2002, compared to approximately
155,000 and 211,000 new trucks during 2001 and 2000, respectively. Although
we have proven that we can remain profitable in this environment, this
will impact our sales and earnings. As always we look forward to the
challenge and we remain positioned to take advantage of any opportunities
that may arise." Rush Enterprises
operates the largest network of Peterbilt heavy-duty truck dealerships
in North America and John Deere construction equipment dealerships in
Texas and Michigan. Its current operations include a network of dealerships
located in Texas, California, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Colorado, Arizona,
New Mexico and Michigan. These dealerships provide an integrated, one-stop
source for the retail sale of new and used heavy-duty trucks and construction
equipment; aftermarket parts, service and body shop facilities; and
a wide array of financial services, including the financing of truck
and equipment sales, insurance products and leasing and rentals. The
Company also operates three retail farm and ranch superstores that serve
the greater San Antonio, Houston and Dallas/Forth Worth, Texas, areas.
CONTACT:
Rush Enterprises
Inc. Martin
A. Naegelin, Jr., 830/626-5230 ### ############################### ###################### Mellon and Vinings Management Corporation Announce Strategic Alliance Alliance Will Provide a Unique Combination of Asset Management and Analytical Skills to Sponsors of Nonqualified Benefit Plans and Taxable Trusts PITTSBURGH, / -- Mellon Financial Corporation today announced that it has entered into an exclusive strategic alliance with Vinings Management Corporation, an Atlanta-based provider of financial analysis, benefit administration and management services for nonqualified benefit plans and taxable trusts. Aligning Mellon's extensive asset management, custody, compensation planning and performance measurement services with Vinings' analytical capabilities will enable the strategic alliance to provide objective and comprehensive client solutions. "We're committed to building on our leadership position as an asset manager by constantly looking for ways to add value to our customer relationships," said Martin G. McGuinn, Mellon chairman and chief executive officer. "This strategic alliance with Vinings Management illustrates how we're leveraging our capabilities in asset management and human resources services to execute that strategy." The product of an extensive development program undertaken by Mellon Lab, Mellon's center for sourcing and developing new businesses, the Mellon-Vinings strategic alliance offers sponsors of nonqualified benefit plans and taxable trusts an end-to-end continuum of financial analysis, plan design, administration and investment management solutions. The strategic alliance will target companies with deferred compensation and other senior management retirement plans. Its capabilities also will be directed at taxable funding arrangements where Vinings has particular expertise, notably trusts that fund FAS 106 liabilities and Nuclear Decommissioning Trusts. "We have always believed that a `fee-for-service' approach is critical in providing clients with unbiased advice regarding the optimal funding of their nonqualified plans and taxable trusts," said Ken Kirk, Vinings president. "Not accepting commissions from insurance carriers or asset managers has allowed us to incorporate, without bias, any and all asset classes in determining the best investment mix for our clients. By aligning ourselves with an institution with Mellon's capabilities in the areas of asset management and asset servicing, we'll be able to take this approach to an entirely new level." "Several of our asset management firms - notably Mellon Capital, Standish Mellon, Mellon Growth Advisors and Certus - have extraordinarily strong track records managing the kinds of assets appropriate for nonqualified deferred compensation plans and taxable trusts," said Ronald P. O'Hanley, Mellon vice chairman and head of Mellon Institutional Asset Management. "By integrating our relevant asset management capabilities and the compensation planning competencies of Buck Consultants with the financial analysis, administration and trust management experience of Vinings, we've significantly enhanced the services we can offer to nonqualified and taxable trust plan sponsors." Senior vice president Peter Austin will head Mellon's interest in the strategic alliance. Vinings Management is led by Ken Kirk and Julie Schneidereit, who together have more than 40 years of experience with nonqualified benefit plans and taxable trust management. Mellon Financial Corporation is a global financial services company. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, Mellon is one of the world's leading providers of financial services for institutions, corporations and affluent individuals, providing institutional asset management, mutual funds, private wealth management, trust and custody, human resources consulting and outsourcing services, investor services and cash management. Mellon has more than $2.6 trillion in assets under management, administration or custody, including more than $590 billion under management. Its asset management companies include The Dreyfus Corporation and U.K.-based Newton Investment Management Limited. News and other information about Mellon is available at http://www.mellon.com. ____________________________________________________________________
By Jeannine
Aversa WASHINGTON
– Construction of new homes and apartments rose 6.3 percent in
January to the highest level in almost two years, fresh evidence that
the housing market is thriving while much of the economy slumps. The Commerce
Department reported Tuesday that builders broke ground last month on
a bigger-than-expected 1.68 million units, at a seasonally adjusted
annual rate. That was the highest level since February 2000 and followed
a 2.3 percent decline in December. Low interest
rate are a key reason that the housing and construction markets have
remained stable even as the national economy has been suffering through
a recession that began in March. While the
stock market has been volatile during the slump, housing values have
seen solid appreciation, another factor motivating new-home buyers,
builders say. In January,
construction of new single-family homes rose 3.5 percent to a rate of
1.35 million. That followed a 4.4 percent advance in December. Builders
started work on 287,000 units, at a seasonally adjusted rate, of apartments,
condos and other multifamily housing in January, an 8.3 percent increase
from the previous month. In December, construction of multifamily housing
fell by a sharp 20.4 percent. By region,
new housing construction rose by 8.7 percent in the Northeast to a rate
of 162,000 in January. In the South, housing construction went up by
14.4 percent to a rate of 800,000. But in the West, housing construction
fell by 3.6 percent to rate of 377,000; in the Midwest, it dipped by
0.3 percent to a rate of 339,000. To prop
up the economy, the Federal Reserve slashed interest rates 11 times
last year, pushing the prime rate – a benchmark for consumer and
business loans – down to its lowest level since November 1965.
Last month,
the Fed opted to leave interest rates unchanged and cited signs of an
economic recovery as the basis for its decision. Many economists
are hopeful that the Fed's aggressive credit easing will pave the way
for a solid economic recovery in the second half of this year. Even if
that happens, many economists expect that mortgage rates – now
hovering below 7 percent – will stay in the 7 percent range in
the months ahead, helping to support the housing market this year. Consumer
confidence, jolted by the Sept. 11 terror attacks, has improved recently,
a sign that consumers, the lifeblood of the economy, won't retrench
in the coming months. Consumer spending accounts for two-thirds of all
economic activity in the United States. "Home builders still have a very positive outlook on the market for new single-family homes, thanks to continuing low interest rates, improving consumer confidence and other solid market fundamentals," said Gary Garczynski, president of the National Association of Home Builders. www.leasingnews.org
|
|