Articles

WellPoint signs Cigna exec as executive VP

John Cannon, formerly senior vice president and deputy general counsel at CIGNA Corp., has joined WellPoint Inc. as executive vice president and general counsel. The appointment takes effect at WellPoint on Dec. 10, the Indianapolis-based health insurance giant announced yesterday. Cannon will oversee legal strategy, legal compliance, litigation and regulatory matters. “We are very pleased […]

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Genesco shares tumble on Finish Line news

Genesco Inc. stock plunged 23 percent today after a banker for Indianapolis-based Finish Line Inc. asked a New York judge to allow it to withdraw financing for Finish Line’s $1.5 billion acquisition of the Tennessee mall retailer. The shares plummeted to about $30 this morning before rebounding slightly. “The combined Finish Line-Genesco entity would be […]

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Fort Wayne company to expand, add 55 workers

Baekgaard Ltd., a Fort Wayne company that designs home furnishings and accessories, will build a $3.6 million corporate headquarters and distribution center on Interstate 69 near Fort Wayne, the Indiana Economic Development Corp. announced today. Baekgaard will add 55 jobs to its existing 10 employees as part of the expansion at Silverado Park industrial park. […]

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Braly tops Journal list of women to watch

The Wall Street Journal has ranked WellPoint Inc. CEO Angela Braly No. 1 on its “50 Women to Watch” list. It’s an annual ranking of women who Journal editors “believe have the potential to make a significant impact on business in the year ahead.” Braly, 46, became CEO of WellPoint on June 1, making the […]

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Holding company buys Hilliard Lyons

J.J.B. Hilliard W.L. Lyons Inc., a unit of Pittsburgh-based PNC Financial Services Group Inc., is being sold to Houchens Industries Inc., a Bowling Green, Ky., holding company that owns businesses in construction, insurance, recycling, warehousing and grocery retailing. Financial terms were not disclosed. Hilliard Lyons is a Louisville, Ky.-based investment firm with 10 offices, including […]

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Japanese firms drive solid growth in Seymour

Two decades ago the southern Indiana town of Seymour suffered from double-digit unemployment, a degraded tax base and an outflow of residents. Today, the town, located between Indianapolis and Louisville, is adding jobs along with housing, hotels and restaurants. The key was a 1986 decision by Toyota supplier Aisin Seiki to locate its first U.S. […]

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Finish Line claims Genesco ‘material’ effect

Indianapolis-based athletic shoe and clothing retailer The Finish Line Inc. said yesterday that a “material adverse effect” has taken place regarding its acquisition of Genesco Inc.-putting the $1.5 billion deal in jeopardy. Yesterday’s filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission followed an amended complaint in Genesco’s September lawsuit seeking to force Finish Line to […]

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Steak n Shake shares battered after report

Grim results in Steak n Shake Co.’s fiscal fourth quarter prompted a sell-off of its stock this morning. Shares in the Indianapolis-based restaurant chain dropped nearly 14 percent before staging a small comeback to trade near $11.65-still 9 percent below yesterday’s close. After the market closed yesterday, the company reported that same-store sales fell 3.9 […]

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Lafayette commission OKs Subaru incentives

Subaru of Indiana Automotive Inc. is a step closer to getting tax abatements on $105 million in proposed investments in its Lafayette plant. The city’s redevelopment commission unanimously approved the incentives last night, but they still must be OK’d by the Lafayette City Council. It was not immediately known how much money the incentive package […]

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BP selling 700 convenience stores

BP America Inc. in the next two years plans to sell the roughly 700 convenience stores it owns and operates, potentially displacing nearly 10,000 workers, the Houston-based unit of BP PLC of London said today. The vast majority of BP’s 13,000 U.S. convenience stores are independently owned. There are 75 BP convenience stores within 50 […]

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Insurer picks Carmel for regional office, 40 jobs

Selective Insurance Co. of America, a property and casualty insurer headquartered in Branchville, N.J., will open a Midwest regional office at 11711 N. Meridian St. in Carmel. The office will employ 40, Indiana Economic Development Corp. said today. The company received no state incentives. Specializing in commercial, personal, bond and flood coverage, Selective Insurance is […]

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Berkshire Hathaway raises stake in WellPoint

Berkshire Hathaway Inc. has boosted its stake in Indianapolis-based WellPoint Inc. by 7.1 percent, according to Bloomberg. A regulatory filing yesterday showed Berkshire, which is owned by billionaire investor Warren Buffett, now holds 4.5 million shares-still less than 1 percent of the health insurer. Buffett has been accumulating the stock for months. In the second […]

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Lilly wins one, loses one with civil rights groups

Two weeks ago, the NAACP backed existing and former black employees of Indianapolis-based Eli Lilly and Co. in a lawsuit that claims they were treated unfairly. Today, the National Urban League bestowed its Corporate Leadership Award on the pharmaceutical maker for working with the Urban League-also a civil rights group-to sponsor a program that encourages […]

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Hillenbrand profit slumps on domestic struggles

Hillenbrand Industries Inc. reported today that profit in its fiscal fourth quarter fell on an adjusted basis to 82 cents per share from $1.12 per share a year earlier. The setback in the period ended Sept. 30 resulted from troubles in its Acute Care and Batesville Casket businesses in North America as well as investments […]

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Aearo Technologies to be sold for $1.2B

Aearo Technologies Inc., the Indianapolis company that makes goggles, earplugs and other personal safety equipment, has agreed to be acquired by 3M for $1.2 billion, the companies announced this morning. St. Paul, Minn.-based 3M plans to use Aearo to expand its own health and environmental-safety product lines. Aearo brands include E-A-R, Peltor, AOSafety and SafeWaze. […]

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CVS merges warehousing into Mount Comfort

Drug prescription giant CVS Caremark Corp. has leased 162,000 square feet of warehouse space in Hancock County at Mount Comfort Commercial Park, according to Colliers Turley Martin Tucker, which helped broker the lease with KTR Capital Partners, a New York private equity firm. The deal, valued at more than $3 million, consolidates several locations and […]

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Marshall & Ilsley to close back-office site

The Milwaukee bank that announced in July that it would acquire First Indiana Bank plans to close First Indiana’s longtime operations center at 1253 N. Emerson Ave. in Greenwood by Jan. 2, according to a filing with the state. Marshall & Ilsley will lay off 121 workers in conjunction with the closure, the filing said. First […]

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Former EDS exec sinks money into ChaCha

Morton Meyerson, formerly president of EDS and the former chairman and CEO of Perot Systems, is the lead investor in a group that has placed $8 million into Indianapolis-based ChaCha, a search engine that uses people to aid in searches. ChaCha also announced today that Meyerson has been named to its board. In addition, ChaCha […]

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Clarian deal concerns Bloomington mayor

Bloomington Mayor Mark Kruzan is expressing concern over a previously announced partnership between his city’s hospital and Indianapolis-based Clarian Health. Kruzan said in a letter to The Herald-Times of Bloomington that his first worry is the potential loss of local control at Bloomington Hospital. “Bloomington Hospital needs to remain just that-Bloomington’s hospital,” he said. “Patient […]

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UPDATE: Gregg stock jumps on strong report

Shares of HHGregg Appliances Inc. shot up 6 percent, to $15.68, today after the Indianapolis appliance and electronics chain reported a brighter earnings outlook and an 8.9-percent increase in same-store sales in its second fiscal quarter. The increase came during a stretch when many retailers struggled. Gregg reported a $6.9 million loss in the quarter […]

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