Shareholders for Lumera OK GigOptix deal
Published 8:28 pm Thursday, December 4, 2008
Shareholders of Lumera Corp. on Thursday approved its merger with GigOptix LLC. The new company will be called GigOptix Inc. The merger is expected to close on Tuesday. Shareholders of at least 54 percent of Bothell-based Lumera’s common stock voted in favor of the merger. Upon closing, each share of the company’s common stock will be converted into 0.125 shares of the common stock of the combined company. The shares of GigOptix, of Palo Alto, Calif., will begin trading on Wednesday on the over-the-counter bulletin board system. Lumera, a spinoff of Microvision Inc., designs electro-optic components for the telecommunications and computing industries. Lumera shares closed at 27 cents, up 2 cents, or 8 percent.
Starbucks warns of lower profits
Starbucks warned Wall Street on Thursday that its profit would fall short of analysts’ expectations this quarter during a conference that began with Chief Executive Howard Schultz trying to assuage concerns about the recession’s effect on the coffee retailer. Chief Financial Officer Troy Alstead said same-store sales have deteriorated 9 percent in the U.S. since the company’s fiscal first quarter began at the end of September. Investors had hoped the 8 percent decline in U.S. sales that Starbucks reported for its fourth quarter compared with the same period a year earlier would be the company’s worst drop.
Crude oil prices continue their fall
Oil tumbled below $44 a barrel Thursday and the average gallon of gasoline is now less than $1.80 nationally, both four-year lows, as the number of people continuing to receive government aid reached a 26-year high, factory orders hit an eight-year low and major corporations slashed jobs. Though the unprecedented decline in energy prices provides some relief to consumers and businesses, it has occurred as the nation dips into recession. Gasoline futures fell below a dollar a gallon. Part of the reason is that as unemployment rises, fewer drive to work.
Mattel wins Bratz from toy rival
A federal judge has banned MGA Entertainment Inc. from making and selling its hugely popular Bratz dolls in a sweeping decision that rival Mattel Inc. hailed as a major victory in the companies’ the four-year doll fight. U.S. District Judge Stephen Larson ordered MGA Entertainment to immediately stop manufacturing the pouty-lipped dolls. The decision was a stunning defeat for MGA, which exploded onto the tween scene in 2001 with the edgy, urban-influenced dolls and made hundreds of millions in profits. A jury found that designer Carter Bryant developed the concept while working for Mattel.
Merck forecasts lower sales, profits
Drugmaker Merck &Co. on Thursday predicted lower profits and flat revenue in 2009 — far below Wall Street expectations — with management blaming the weak global economy, generic competition, slower sales of key products and restructuring charges. Merck has been struggling all year with safety concerns hurting sales of its key cholesterol drugs.
From Herald staff and news services
