Frontier Financial Corp. of Everett, the parent of Frontier Bank, reported that net income during the fourth quarter of 2007 increased to $18 million, or 40 cents per share, compared with income of $17.6 million for the same quarter of 2006. For the full year, Frontier’s net income rose to $73.9 million, or $1.62 per share, from $68.9 million in 2006. In 2007, loans increased 24 percent to $704 million.
Prime Pacific posts higher earnings
Lynnwood-based Prime Pacific Financial Services, the holding company for Prime Pacific Bank, reported an 11 percent increase in fourth-quarter earnings over the same period in 2006. Net income for the quarter increased to $363,000, or 29 cents per share, from $326,000 in 2006. For the year, the bank saw a 22 percent increase in income to $1.5 million.
Seattle Genetics raises $97.5 million
Seattle Genetics Inc. of Bothell said it has completed a public offering of 11.5 million shares of stock, raising $97.5 million for the biotechnology firm. The company plans to use its new cash to fund research and development efforts, including clinical trials for its anti-cancer drug candidates, and for general corporate purposes.
Drug warning not a factor for Amgen
Biotech giant Amgen Inc., which has operations in Seattle and Bothell, reported its fourth-quarter profits rose, despite government warnings about the safety of its popular anemia drugs. Amgen reported a profit of $835 million for the fourth quarter, or 76 cents per share, compared with $833 million in the same period a year earlier. Revenue fell slightly to $3.75 billion.
Hershey pulls mints that look like drugs
The Hershey Co. is halting production of Ice Breakers Pacs in response to criticism that the mints look too much like illegal street drugs, the company’s president and chief executive officer said Thursday. Ice Breakers Pacs, which first hit store shelves in November, are nickel-sized dissolvable pouches with a powdered sweetener inside.
Fraud could cost French bank dearly
Societe Generale, France’s second-largest bank, revealed that a 31-year old junior trader had for over a year been fraudulently using company funds to bet on European stock markets. In what appears to be the largest trading fraud ever carried out by a single person, the losses to the bank total 4.9 billion euros, or $7 billion.
Alaska Air feels pain from fuel costs
Alaska Air Group Inc. said Thursday it swung to a fourth-quarter profit due to special gains, though adjusted results reflected a wider loss than Wall Street had expected, as fares failed to keep up with fuel costs. The parent company of Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air posted a profit of $7.4 million, versus a loss a year earlier.
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