RadioShack revenue falls; stock tumbles
A yearlong turnaround effort at RadioShack Corp. appeared to falter Monday as the electronics retailer swung to a second-quarter profit but saw revenue decline 15 percent because of softening sales of cell phones and other key products. Its shares sank 11 percent. RadioShack reported net income of $47 million, or 34 cents per share, for the three months ended June 30 versus a loss of $3.2 million, or 2 cents per share, a year ago. Shares plunged $3.25, or 11 percent, to $25.55 Monday.
Frontier president talks at conference
John Dickson, president and CEO of Everett’s Frontier Financial Corp., is set to speak today at the KBW Community Bank Investor Conference in New York City. A broadcast of the presentation will be available at 8 a.m. Pacific Time at www.kbw.com/news/conferenceCommunity.html.
China cools credit to slow economy
China tightened credit Monday in a new effort to douse its sizzling economy, ordering banks to shrink the pool of money for lending by increasing their reserves for a sixth time this year. The move was widely expected after the economy grew by 11.9 percent last quarter, its fastest rate in 12 years despite earlier efforts to slow the expansion. Beijing raised interest rates on July 20 for a third time this year. The amount of reserves that lenders must keep with the central bank was raised 0.5 point to 12 percent of their deposits, the central bank said. The increase takes effect Aug. 15.
Verizon to buy cell-phone carrier
Verizon Communications Inc. reported second-quarter earnings that satisfied analyst expectations Monday and said its wireless arm would buy a rural cell-phone carrier to expand its reach. Investors found reasons to dislike the news, and the stock of the country’s second-largest telecommunications company fell 49 cents, or 1.2 percent, to $41.51, even as the broader market rebounded from last week’s losses. Verizon Wireless said it had agreed to buy Rural Cellular Corp., which provides cell phone service in 15 states under the Unicel brand, for $757 million, or $45 per share. That’s a stiff premium over the $31.81 closing price for Rural Cellular shares on Friday, but the stock hit a high of $46.34 in early July, fueled by acquisition speculation. On Monday, the stock soared to $42.76.
T-bill rates decline in Monday auction
The Treasury Department auctioned three-month bills at a discount rate of 4.825 percent, down from 4.885 percent last week. Six-month bills were auctioned at a discount rate of 4.8 percent, down from 4.89 percent last week. For a $10,000 bill, the three-month price was $9,878.03, while a six-month bill sold for $9,757.33. Separately, the Federal Reserve said Monday the average yield for one-year Treasury bills, a popular index for changing adjustable-rate mortgages, dipped to 4.91 percent last week from 4.99 percent the previous week.
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