Search

If you had invested in the eight REITs 'FORBES' graded double-A in early 2002 (for performance and value), your total return would have been 12% for the year, soundly beating the REIT industry's 3.6% and even rivaling Green Street's buy list (17%). The S&P 500 produced a dismal -22%. This time none of the 20 biggest REITs on our list merits the coveted A/A rating. The best we have are the eight REITs with A/B or B/A split ratings.

Presents several business news briefs. Heirs of ex-Forbes 400 member James L. (Bud) Walton, who with older brother Sam founded Wal-Mart, have settled an Internal Revenue Service tax claim of $189 million for just $37 million. Despite criticism of its international $15 million media campaign to sway Muslim opinion, the State Department is forging ahead in print. Despite criticism of its international $15 million media campaign to sway Muslim opinion, the State Department is forging ahead in print. It is paying custom publisher Magazine Group $755,000 to produce four issues of a 50,000-circulation Arab-language lifestyle magazine aimed at young adults. A serious academic study for the National Bureau of Economic Research of television's 'Weakest Link' says Hispanic and elderly contestants are disproportionately voted against by other contestants.

Embarrassing enough for Robert Pritzker that he is being sued by his daughter Liesel, on a complaint that he looted her and her brother Matthew's trust funds in order to fund the family's philanthropic ventures. Now it comes out that Pritzker entities could wind up with not just relatives but the IRS after them, for what the tax code calls "self-dealing." That's a business transaction between a private foundation and its managers or main contributors. If allegations in the suit are true, the self-dealing problem arose this way: Robert became trustee of Liesel's and Matthew's trusts in October 1994. On November 23, 2002 he removed from each of those trusts a 5% stake in the family's H Group Holdings, whose assets included 168 Hyatt hotels owned or managed; Conwood, a smokeless tobacco company; retirement-housing developer Hyatt Classic Residences; a 15% stake in Ticketmaster; and $1 billion in cash and securities. Self-dealing is kosher if the transaction takes place at a fair price, if the foundation can prove as much and if the deal is flagged on its tax return. It seems the Pritzker Foundation slipped up here. A Pritzker family lawyer says Liesel's and Matthew's shares were appraised by an outside firm that determined $188 million was a fair value.

This article asserts that actor Nicholas Cage's brief marriage to Lisa Marie Presley helped spark a boom in comic books. In what must have been the biggest payday for American nerdhood since businessman Bill Gates went public, the Cage auction raised $1.7 million, including a 15% commission, from 420 comic books and re-priced the whole top end of the market. Since the Cage auction, collectors, under a cloud since 1994, when a bubble in "brand-new collectible" comics collapsed, have been rushing home to scour attics for treasures.

List several Harvard Business School graduates who have been accused of unethical business and their consequential prison terms. Adrian Antoniu, convicted of misusing confidential information; Marsha Allen-Collins, convicted of forging documents to get bank loans; L. Wynn Johnson, president of Utah's fraud-ridden Bonneville Pacific Corp.; Alan B. Bond, convicted of taking $6 million in kickbacks as a money manager; Others.

The article announces that Ronald Daly resigned as head of printing at printing company R.R. Donnelley five days after a story about him was published in the November 25, 2002 issue of "Forbes" magazine.

This article reports that in September the journal "Playboy," installed a new editorial director, James Kaminsky, the 41-year-old former executive editor of Maxim, Playboy's ultrasuccessful lad- mag competitor. Hugh Hefner wants big changes, including more space in the book for articles and, gasp, fewer nude photos. Playboy Enterprises Inc.'s chief, Christie Hefner, needs a boost. Investors hopes for even a nominal profit this year have evaporated and the stock is down 45% to a recent $9.

The article presents business news briefs related to the U.S. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is cracking down on a couple of allegedly crooked hedge funds. One of the cases is against a fund called House Edge. According to the SEC, the fund promoter marketed his $2.9 million fund to retirees by claiming 148% returns, while the fund in fact had lost $850,000. In another development, Nevada held a special legislative session and in August 2002 set a $350,000 cap on pain and suffering damages in medical malpractice suits.

The article focuses on real estate investments in the U.S. in 2002 after September 11 attack. Suddenly, buildings taller than 30 stories were under threat. But a year later the panic is over. Tall buildings are back in vogue and the real estate stocks have returned an average 5%.

The article focuses on shareholder lawsuits at HealthSouth Corp. A raft of shareholder suits charge that HealthSouth chairman Richard Scrushy and another director sold $100 million worth of shares knowing that a clarification in Medicare billing rules on group therapy would reduce annual operating earnings at the rehabilitation hospital chain by $175 million. HealthSouth's stock has plunged 75% since the earnings reduction announcement on August 27, 2002. The suits claim that HealthSouth knew about the Medicare billing clarification as early as May 17, 2002.

The article focuses on the decision of Toronto, Ontario-based TrizecHahn Corp. to open a new real estate investment trust (REIT) office. This REIT is expected to pay $1.75 dividend per share, which would be an increase from TrizecHahn's 35 cents. TrizecHahn owns skyscraper Sears Tower in Chicago, Illinois and many other properties in New York. TrizecHahn's stock has increased 13% as compared to 30% drop it experienced in the Standard & Poor's 500 Index.

The article reports that book sales at Family Christian Stores Inc., the largest Christian book retailer in the U.S., has risen 30% and the sale of pocket bibles has risen 150%, since September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. The article also reports that books on Islam are sold out. Whereas, the sale of the fiction category is reported to be not doing well.

This article presents news briefs related to business and finance. Craig McCaw's stocks in his national broadband provider, Nextlink Communications Inc., renamed XO Communications Inc., has plunged 97%. Ohio computer maker NCR Corp. announced that its second-quarter earnings were 22 cents shy of the 57 cents most analysts had expected. Dutch grocer Royal Ahold NV agreed to buy Deerfield, Illinois-based Alliant Foodservice Inc. for $2.2 billion, in September.

Offers business news briefs for July 9, 2001. Profile of advertising agency holding company Interpublic Group; Criticism of James McNerney's plans for General Electric; Speculation on Jeffrey Smulyan's plan to invigorate Emmis Communications; Changes at rental outfit Budget Group.

Presents updates of stories previously reported by 'Forbes' magazine. Approval of the leukemia drug Gleevec, developed by Novartis; Drop in USG Corp. stock; Plans of the United States Drug Enforcement Agency to target black market dealers of the prescription drug Oxycontin.

Provides an update on the prediction that company Divine InterVentures would not succeed. How the initial public offering of the company was low; Further drop in share prices as a result of lower interest in Internet companies; Resignation of many executives.

Evaluates Web sites that deal with the commercial real estate industry. Sites that focus on administration, property listings, financing, title searching and market research; Internet sites, including CapitalThinking, Commercial Realty Online, CoStar Group, EquityCity.com and RealtyIQ.com.

Offers United States financial news for the week ending January 24, 2000. Details of the stock performance of railroad company Union Pacific; Forecasts of stock prices for construction equipment company Caterpillar; Details of the excessive market cap of Priceline.com; Others.

Reports on news and information regarding business. The help that BMG Entertainment offered Arista Records in their deal with The Artist Formerly Known as Prince; The approval given by Chicago, Illinois to developer Scott Toberman for the construction of a 108-story building; Some of the ongoing patent litigation surrounding inventions by Jerome Lemelson.

The article reports on the business planning of the company Abbott Laboratories Inc. to improve its earnings growth which has been stuck near 11%. It is informed that Abbott's new chief executive officer, Miles White, has orchestrated two stock-for-stock acquisitions: a $7.3 billion purchase of Aiza Corp. and a $680 million purchase of Perclose Inc.

Offers business news for June 14, 1999. Metromedia International Group's John Kluge's share in the company; Earnings and share price of Toll Brothers, a luxury home builder in Pennsylvania; The Illinois-based statistical analysis software company SPSS Inc. expected to boost earnings. INSET: Toy story, by Dolly Setton.

The article provides information on the shares of Sunstone Hotels. The author cites that in the April 19, 1999 issue of "Forbes" under the Streetwalker section, a recommendation of $7 for the high-yielding shares of Sunstone is discussed. After the recommendation, the author found that Chairman Robert Alter announced a buyout at the rate of $9.50 and $10 a share. Remarks from Marc Halle of Alpine Management & Research are included. It is also cited that the company has hired Goldman to evaluate its alternatives.

Examines several companies and their financial situations. Expectation that Sunstone Hotel real estate investment trust will be acquired; Low stock value for Total Renal Care Holdings; Changes made at Dixie Yarns and expected sales in 1999.

Reports on information regarding investments and investing. Why online traders should consider qualifying as a professional trader for tax purposes; Predictions that Data General Corp. will improve its net losses of 1998 to a profit in 1999; Financial success of Tier Technologies of Walnut Creek, California.

The article offers outlook on the stock performance of multinational conglomerate Honeywell Inc. for 1999. Figures presented indicate the revenues of Honeywell in 1998 and its predicted electronics sales to aerospace company Boeing through 2001. A forecast on the potential revenue of Honeywell from flight control equipment, as well as its earnings by 2000 is offered.

The article reports on the financial performance of the Newhall Land & Farming Co. Newhall got most of its $64 million, or $1.86 a share, in 1998 net income by selling land and buildings in southern California, not renting space. But these asset sales are a steady affair, and there are a lot more assets where they came from. Newhall still owns 37,000 acres just 30 miles up Interstate 5 from downtown Los Angeles, California.

Considers the December 1998 outlook for three publicly-traded stocks. Positive outlook for Dominican Republic telecommunication services provider Tricom S.A., whose stock was hit during hurricane season; Negative outlook for Action Performance Cos., the company that makes souvenirs and die-cast collectibles of Nascar cars; Negative outlook for Starwood Financial Trust.

The article reports on the financial status of Pennzoil following its attempt to revitalize its stock. Pennzoil's stock has fallen from $83.75 to $35.25 a share after the company vetoed a $6.4 billion, $84-per-share takeover from Union Pacific Resources. Pennzoil will combine its stock with auto products company Quaker State to boost the price of its stock.

The article provides a forecast on the financial performance of Esterline Technologies, one of the suppliers of Boeing Co. Esterline Technologies is an engineer-run miniconglomerate and is associated with Boeing. The aerospace business of Esterline is expected to account 40% of its expected sales and that its replacement parts business may grow 20-30% of revenues. The revenues of the company were also derived from its instrumentation division and drilling equipment business for printed circuit boards.

Comments on the performance of three United States stocks as of October 1998. Financial difficulties facing Celgene; High growth prospects for telemarketer Sykes Enterprises; Growth prospects for aerospace supplier Esterline Technologies.

Presents the views of Barrie Wigmore of Goldman Sachs regarding the stock market as of October 12, 1998. The current market an adjustment of expectations; Shrinking of real corporate earnings; Balanced devaluation; Turmoil in developing nations; Positive aspects to the economy; Historical observations about bad stock market crashes; His expectations for the market's recovery; His sales and purchases.