Southwest Missouri News

Carthage

Leggett & Platt declares dividend

Carthage-based Leggett & Platt Inc.'s board of directors has declared a fourth-quarter dividend of 12 cents per share, according to a news release from the company.

That amount represents a 9.1 percent increase compared to the fourth-quarter dividend last year. The dividend will be paid Jan. 15, 2002, to shareholders of re-cord Dec. 14.

The company's quarterly dividends declared this year total 48 cents per share, 14.3 percent higher than in 2000. In the last 30 years, Leggett & Platt's quarterly dividend has grown at a compound annual rate of 15.3 percent.

The company also has announced that same-location sales for the first six weeks of the fourth quarter were down 13 percent compared to the same period a year ago. Based on those results, the company has narrowed its expectations related to the fourth-quarter guidance issued Oct. 17.

Leggett & Platt now forecasts that same-location sales will be down 9 percent to 14 percent compared to fourth-quarter 2000, and fourth-quarter earnings now are expected to be between 16 cents and 20 cents per diluted share.

Joplin

MGE owner reports revenue drop

Southern Union Co., the parent company of Missouri Gas Energy, reported a sharp drop in revenue during its first quarter.

The net loss for the quarter, which ended Sept. 30, came to $30.4 million, or 58 cents per share. That compares with a net loss of $14 million, or 27 cents per share, during the first quarter of last year.

The company said more than $20 million of that loss stemmed from restructuring changes that were announced this year.

That plan included voluntary early retirement for 400 people, as well as 48 jobs cut in the company's Austin, Texas, and Kansas City offices.

In addition, the company reported operating revenues for the quarter of $174 million, up from $144.5 million for the first quarter a year ago.

The first-quarter numbers also reflect an increase in the monthly customer charge and the monthly energy charge, or delivery fee, for Joplin and other MGE customers.

Those higher charges took effect in August, and the increase is expected to generate nearly $10 million annually for the company.

MGE provides natural gas to a half million customers in Joplin, Kansas City and many other communities in western Missouri.

AmeriServe chef wins award

Lynn Sunderland, a chef with the Missouri Southern State College food contractor, AmeriServe, is the winner of a national contest sponsored by the Kraft food company.

Sunderland won first prize a check for $2,000 for her recipe for Ham Sandwich Soup consisting of cheese, ham, beer, rye croutons, and several other ingredients.

Her recipe is scheduled for national publication.

Monett

JHA gets Wall-Street.com honor

Jack Henry & Associates has been included in the current group of 32 participants in the "Fastest-Growing Com-panies in America" investor relations program sponsored by Wall-Street.com.

As a result of its participation in the program, Jack Henry & Associates was included in the Wall-Street.com growth company listings that recently appeared in two of the nation's major financial publications.

Additionally, it was featured in the "Fast-Growing Company" section of the Wall-Street.com Web site.

Nearly every actively traded company in America was screened, using data provided by several of the nation's leading financial databases, to determine the growth companies invited to be included in WSC's "Fastest-Growing Companies in America."

Companies were screened for exceptional long-term sales growth, recent growth trends, size and stock price.