March 17, 2017 at 8:11 p.m.

State of County talk scheduled

Business Roundup

Jay County Commissioners will provide a State of the County update March 28 at the Jay County Chamber of Commerce monthly networking luncheon.

Set for noon in the conference rooms at Jay County Hospital, the luncheon will feature remarks by commissioners Doug Inman, Mike Leonhard and Chuck Huffman.

Cost of the luncheon is $8 per person. To make reservations, contact the chamber at (260) 726-4481 or [email protected] by noon Friday.



Ardagh jumps

The price of stock in Ardagh Group, parent company of glass container plants in Dunkirk and Winchester, jumped nearly 20 percent when the company floated an initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange this week.

The 16.2 million shares — about a 6.9 percent stake in the company — were initially priced at $19 a share but quickly jumped to nearly $23.

“We knew demand was good before we started,” executive chairman Paul Coulson told The Irish Times.

Coulson owns a 33.5 per cent stake in the company, and after the IPO his stock is valued at $1.78 billion.

Ardagh, which is a leader in both the glass and metal container business internationally, had net debt of 7.2 billion Euros at the end of 2016, and Coulson has said that proceeds of the IPO stock sale will be used to lower that debt load. The company has grown over the past several years through acquisition. The Dunkirk plant had been part of Saint-Gobain, while the Winchester plant had been part of Anchor Glass, both of which were acquired by Ardagh.

Coulson indicated this week that further acquisitions may lie ahead.

“We are acquisitive. We will be buying things,” Coulson told The Irish Times. “But there’s nothing on the horizon at the moment.”







Expo ahead

Time is running out to reserve display space for the April 1 Jay County Chamber Business Expo and Job Fair.

The event will take place at the Jay Community Center and more than 70 exhibitors are expected to be on hand. Booth rental is $150 for chamber members and $200 for non-members.

To participate, businesses should contact the chamber at (260) 726-4481. For more information, go to http://www.jaycountychamber.com.



Learn about finance

The Crossroads Financial Federal Credit Union youth advisory board will host “Financial Feud” at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Lions Club Civic Center, 307, E. 100 North, Portland. Doors will open at 6:15 p.m.

The event, which is free, will include a “Family Feud”-style competition in which teams will answer multiple-choice questions about finance topics. Examples include ideas for building good credit or even items as simple as knowing what historical figure is on a specific denomination of money. There will also be food, prizes and music.



On bubble

Two Indiana J.C. Penney stores have been listed as among those at risk of closing this year. Penney announced it would close more than 100 stores and would list the specifics later this month.

Morningstar Credit Ratings said both the Muncie Mall store and the Penney store at Glenbrook Square Mall in Fort Wayne are among those at the greatest risk based upon sales data.



Joins 500

Raymond James Financial Inc. announced this week it has been selected for the S&P 500 Index effective Monday, March 20.

The financial firm, which has an office in Portland, will be a part of the GICS Investment Banking and Brokerage Sub-Industry Index.

“We are honored to be included with this prestigious group of companies,” chairman and chief executive officer Paul Reilley said in a prepared statement. “This represents a significant milestone for Raymond James.”



Files suit

POET LLC, parent company of POET Bio-Refining-Portland, has filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, accusing a South Dakota company of stealing its trade secrets.

The suit alleges that Nelson Engineering of Sioux Falls misappropriated a trade secret known as “delayed dilution,” a technology that allows the company to achieve increased ethanol production from each fermenter in the production process.

“POET has invested significant time and money into developing proprietary technology and processes that contribute to our long-standing success as an industry leader,” POET president and chief operating officer Jeff Lautt said in a prepared statement. “We will do whatever necessary to protect our intellectual property from unauthorized use by others.”



Top chaplain

Tyson Foods Inc., parent company of Tyson Mexican Original of Portland, has named a new director of chaplain services.

Karen Diefendorf, a former military chaplain with the U.S. Army, will direct the program.

Tyson began its chaplaincy services in 2000, providing pastoral care for employees and their families.

Diefendorf received her bachelor’s degree from Lincoln Christian College, her master’s of divinity from Lincoln Christian Seminary, and her master’s of sacred theology from Yale University.



Wal-Mart acquisition

Wal-Mart’s e-commerce firm, jet.com, has acquired Modcloth, an online clothing retailer, it was reported this week by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Modcloth was launched in 2002 and is known for vintage and quirky styles. It has 350 employees in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Pittsburgh.



Scaling back

Gannett daily newspapers in Louisiana and one in Mississipi will switch to publishing print editions just three days a week, beginning in April, The Associated Press reported this week.

The Hattiesburg American in Mississippi and The Town Talk of Alexandria, Louisiana, now publish seven days a week, but will switch to Wednesday, Friday,and Sunday publication. The Daily World in Opelousas, Louisiana, now six days a week, will follow the same three-day schedule.

Gannett publishes The Star Press in Muncie, the Journal-Courier in Lafayette, Palladium-Item in Richmond, Evansville Courier & Press and Indianapolis Star.



Expanding

Smith Brothers of Berne has received approval from the Berne Planning Commission to proceed with construction of an addition that would add 87,335 feet. The project will use vacated Berne Street, and Hoosier Street will be extended to assure good flow of traffic to the north side of Berne, company officials said.

Construction is expected to begin in April 2018.



Wound care

Adams Memorial Hospital is opening a new Wound Care Clinic and will begin seeing patients on March 27 in the Medical Office Complex directly behind the hospital in Decatur.

Team members include Dr. Philip Rettenmaier, nurse practitioner Deb Brandenberger, and registered nurse Alicia Miller
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