Overheard

The co-founder of Precision Stainless Inc. has been named an executive in residence at Drury University’s Edward Jones Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation.

Tom Singleton joins current Executive in Residence Steve Nurnberg at the center. Singleton’s primary responsibility will be working with the Springfield Angel Network, a new program that matches investors with local companies seeking startup capital. His position is paid. Singleton is a 1966 Drury graduate who co-founded Precision Stainless in Springfield in 1984. He served as CEO until 2002, when he sold the company and retired. Singleton has been a business consultant and was a charter member of the Southwest Area Manufacturers Association.

Hear This, Branson

Verizon Wireless has expanded its wireless network to the Branson area, the telecom company announced last week. The new service area includes the city of Branson, along U.S. Highway 65 north from the city to Springfield, Silver Dollar City, Hollister, Point Lookout, Kimberling City and along portions of U.S. Route 160 and state highways 76, 265, 13 and 248. The network expansion also offers Verizon business customers BroadbandAccess, which allows businesses to access their firewall-protected information from anywhere in the coverage area through a secure, high-speed connection, the release said. In 2007, Verizon spent $134 million on improvements to its Kansas/Missouri region, the release said.

Revised Ratings

Investment analysts last week tweaked their ratings for two publicly traded companies based in southwest Missouri. A JPMorgan analyst upgraded Springfield-based O’Reilly Automotive Inc. (Nasdaq: ORLY) to “overweight,” citing a growing demand for its do-it-for-me auto repair services and expected cost savings from its recent acquisition of CSK Auto Corp. Meanwhile, Moody’s Investors Service placed Carthage-based Leggett & Platt’s (NYSE: LEG) A2 long-term rating and Prime-1 commercial paper rating on review for possible downgrade. Moody’s said it is concerned that Leggett’s financial leverage will stay elevated during the medium term because consumer spending is expected to remain sluggish. The downgrade should not exceed one notch, Moody’s said.

Slice of Nice

Proceeds from a charity car wash Aug. 27 at In and Out Car Wash, 2233 N. Glenstone Ave., will help start Ozarks Literacy Council’s new Foster Children’s Reading Program. This is the second in a series of four car washes owner Greg Byler is holding for the Literacy Council. Proceeds from the July wash raised $2,200, and organizers hope to collect $6,000 for the program in all. Car washes start at $3 and include vacuuming.