Articles

Finish Line CEO, co-founder to retire

The co-founder of The Finish Line Inc. plans to step down as CEO in December, the locally based athletic apparel retailer said this morning. Alan H. Cohen will retire on Dec. 1, after 32 years at the company. He’ll remain as the chairman of the board.Glenn S. Lyon, Finish Line’s president, will assume the role […]

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WISH-TV signals go silent on Bright House cable

Bright House Networks has stopped transmitting signals of three local TV stations owned by Lin TV Corp., including WISH-TV Channel 8, after the parties failed to agree to extend their current deal. Rhode Island-based Lin, which also owns WNDY-TV Channel 23 and WIIH-TV Channel 17, had complained that Bright House refused to negotiate. Bright House, […]

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August home sales plummet

Sales of houses in the Indianapolis area dropped nearly 18 percent in August compared with the same month a year earlier, according to the Metropolitan Indianapolis Board of Realtors. The 13-county region generated 2,350 sales compared to 2,852 in August of 2007 year and 3,204 in the same month in 2006. The decline wasn’t just […]

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Purdue scores high among exec MBA programs

Purdue University’s executive MBA program, which is tailored for professionals returning for an advanced degree, placed 21st in the nation in The Wall Street Journal’s first such ranking. Purdue’s Krannert School was the only program in the state to make the list of the top 25 universities. Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management placed No. 1, […]

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Report: Lilly offers $6.1B for ImClone

Eli Lilly and Co. is in late talks to acquire ImClone Systems Inc. for $6.1 billion, according to a report on The Wall Street Journal’s Web site. The New York biotech firm develops various medicines for cancer treatments. Lilly would pay $70 per share for ImClone, the Journal said. The deal would be one of […]

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What bad economy? Tourism’s fine in Nashville

Shopkeepers in the Brown County tourism center of Nashville are seeing little impact from the weak economy. Rather, some say business is up, according to The Herald-Times of Bloomington. Tourists are staying closer to home instead of embarking on long, costly trips, with some opting for Brown County over Gatlinburg, Tenn., and other destinations in […]

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Evansville may lose Mead Johnson home base

Mead Johnson Nutrition Co., the unit of Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. that is being spun off as a separate company, is considering moving its headquarters out of Evansville. Mead Johnson, which makes Enfamil and other baby food products, wants better access for international travel, according to the Evansville Courier & Press. About 40 to 60 employees […]

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BKD buys Thomas Healthcare Consulting

Thomas Healthcare Consulting, an Indianapolis firm that helps long-term care facilities with reimbursements from Medicare and Medicaid as well as other issues, has been acquired by BKD LLP. BKD is an accounting and consulting firm headquartered in Springfield, Mo. Financial terms were not disclosed. Robert Thomas, who founded Thomas Healthcare in 1989, is joining BKD […]

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Dome roof deflated

As officials predicted, only about 45 minutes was needed this morning to deflate the RCA Dome roof. The roof, which has hovered over the former home of the Indianapolis Colts, gradually fell to the floor as air was bled from ventilation ducts. More images from the event will be available at www.IBJ.com later today.

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Conseco chairman buys up shares

Conseco Inc. Chairman Glenn Hilliard snapped up 89,100 shares of the company late last week – at about the same time CEO Jim Prieur bought 200,000 shares, regulatory filings show. Hilliard acquired his shares for $4.61 to $7 each; Prieur acquired his for $4.35 to $4.97. Conseco stock has been flagging since the Carmel insurer […]

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Best Buy moving into west-side retail center

The Best Buy store at West 38th Street and Moeller Road will move to a new location to be built in Centre West, the redevelopment project at I-65 and Lafayette Road, the Indianapolis-based developer, Centre Properties, announced today. Best Buy will join existing Wal-Mart, Shoe Carnival and Garden Ridge locations in the redeveloped retail center. […]

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Carmel software developer to add 90 workers

Software Engineering Professionals Inc. intends to spend $7 million on an expansion will result in hiring nearly 90 employees in addition to its existing roster of 71, Indiana Economic Development Corp. announced today. The Carmel company, which develops enterprise and Web-based software for aerospace, medical, defense and automotive customers, plans to finish the expansion within […]

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Best Buy moving into west-side retail center

Best Buy is among seven retailers joining a Wal-Mart Supercenter and Shoe Carnival at Centre West, a new shopping mall at I-65 and Lafayette Road, developer Centre Properties announced today. Also planning to enter the location are Verizon Wireless, Dots, GameStop, CheckSmart, Pike Plaza Dental and Myra Eyebrows. Centre Properties is headquartered in Indianapolis.

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Miller Building Systems closes

An Elkhart-based manufacturer of modular houses and commercial buildings has gone out of business, closing a plant in the northern Indiana city and another at Leola, Penn. Miller Building Systems Inc. tossed a total of about 200 employees out of jobs as a result of the decision, according to the South Bend Tribune. The company […]

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Swedish auto parts maker closing plant

Autoliv Inc., a Sweden-based manufacturer of air bags and other auto-safety equipment, said yesterday that it will close its plant in the northeastern Indiana town of Columbia City, throwing 380 employees out of jobs beginning this year. The work will be consolidated at a Utah plant because the company doesn’t foresee the American auto market […]

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Mid-West Insulation closing down

Mid-West Insulation Inc., one of the city’s largest privately held commercial insulation contractors, told its 40 employees on Monday that it is closing. President and CEO Tom Flynn said the weakening economy caused profits to tighten, and the family-owned firm decided to shut down rather than allowing conditions to worsen and leave creditors and customers […]

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State unemployment rate inches up

Joblessness edged up to 6.4 percent in August from 6.3 percent in July, the Indiana Department of Workforce Development said today. The figure, which is seasonally adjusted and subject to revision, was well over the 4.5 percent rate of August 2007. Still, the department painted a nuanced picture of Indiana’s rate being a half-point below […]

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Accuride shares briefly soar

Shares of Evansville-based manufacturer Accuride Corp., which closed last night at 73 cents each, exploded as high as $4 this morning on news the company’s exposure to Lehman Bros.’ bankruptcy is limited. The vehicle parts maker disclosed that only 19 percent of its $125 million credit facility is backed by Lehman commercial paper. The shares […]

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CountryMark resumes oil drilling

Indianapolis-based CountryMark Cooperative Inc., which operates an oil refinery that turns out diesel fuel used primarily by farmers, has returned to drilling oil wells after abandoning the production business decades ago. CountryMark has hit oil with a well it drilled in Spencer County, and two more wells are planned this year in Posey County – […]

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Conseco chief buys 200,000 shares

Conseco CEO Jim Prieur bought 200,000 shares in the company today, the Carmel insurer disclosed. The purchase brought Prieur’s stake to 430,000 shares, according to Bloomberg. Prieur acquired the shares for $4.35 to $4.97 a share. The stock is up 22 percent today, to $4.62, after having lost nearly half its value this week. The […]

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