Business barometer
Analyze the performance of publicly traded local businesses in Indiana. Match their performance directly related to news stories reported on IndyStar.com.
Choose a stock to analyze.
Choose a date range to display by clicking and dragging the time frame you would like to display in the chart above.
IndyStar.com: Business
Indiana's leading news source for all the top stories, local news, sports and weather.
Putting the squeeze on state office space
1,000-plus workers will move in plan to trim leasing costs A more-frugal state government is trimming its leased office space in the Indianapolis area by consolidating offices or pulling agencies back in-house to the Downtown Government Center. More...
Biologic drugs could face competition from generics
Health-care reform bills call for 12 years of exclusivity WASHINGTON — A fast-growing category of prescription drugs that are among the most expensive on the market could, for the first time, face competition from generic competitors under the...
Buffett is making $34B bet on railroad
Berkshire Hathaway to buy BNSF in the biggest deal of investor’s storied career OMAHA, Neb. — Billionaire Warren Buffett likes to compare his company to a masterpiece that he’s been painting for nearly five decades, and the deal he...
Commodities, industrial stocks push markets
NEW YORK — Investors sidestepped some of their doubts about the economy and bought energy and industrial stocks as commodity prices rose. Stocks ended back-and-forth trading mostly higher Tuesday as a spike in the price of gold and corporate...
Briefly Around the State + Nation
Payments cited in FDA report ahead of Zimmer-device talks Washington A Food and Drug Administration panel will meet today to discuss a Wabash, Ind.-based company’s implant that appears to be effective in treating spinal problems. But questions...
Auto supplier to double work force in Elkhart
In hard-hit Elkhart, automotive supply distributor Kem Krest today said it will expand its operations and create more than 50 new jobs by 2012. The 30-year-old company plans to invest $3.3 million to move its headquarters to an existing 150,000...
Wishard to get $6M grant if initiative passes
The Wishard Foundation said today it has received a $6 million grant to upgrade the Indianapolis hospital, but only if today’s referendum passes. The grant would come from the Richard M. Fairbanks Foundation for the construction of a new...
FDA questions role of payments in Zimmer study
WASHINGTON — Federal health officials say an implant from Zimmer Holdings Inc. appears to be effective in treating spinal problems, but questions remain about whether company payments to doctors influenced the device’s trial data. Zimmer...
Droid may take bite out of iPhone
Resistance is futile. I am truly impressed with the Motorola Droid, the first phone born of the partnership between Web and mobile software developer Google and carrier Verizon Wireless. I say this even though I’ve sworn up and down in this...
'Perfect storm' has swamped pig farmers, lowering prices
Higher cost of feed, poor economy and H1N1 have clobbered pork industry There’s a reason why that pork roast at the supermarket is so inexpensive right now. Local and national pork producers are suffering like they haven’t suffered in...
Rebounding, Ford reports $997M in net income
DETROIT — Ford Motor Co. has come a long way from the nearly $30 billion in losses it racked up from 2006 to 2008. After closing more than 10 plants and slashing 45 percent of its work force since 2006 in its long-ailing North American...
Norwood decides to seek Chapter 7 bankruptcy
Indianapolis-based Norwood Promotional Products Holdings has changed its mind. Instead of going for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, it now will seek Chapter 7 liquidation, according to a motion filed last week. Norwood, the second-largest promotional products...
Stocks higher, but mercurial market is back
NEW YORK — After months on hiatus, volatility is back on Wall Street. Stocks ended higher Monday after another day of big swings. Stronger reports on manufacturing and housing gave the market an early boost, but a rise in the dollar and worries...
Lilly, Amylin get OK for use of diabetes drug by itself
Indianapolis — Federal authorities have approved a synthetic hormone co-marketed by Eli Lilly and Co. and another pharmaceutical business for use without other medications. Byetta, injected twice daily, is a synthetic hormone that spurs...
Lilly to cut up to 191 workers in Indiana by end of 2009
Eli Lilly and Co. has informed the Indiana Department of Workforce Development that it will cut up to 191 employees in a restructuring of its osteoporosis, diabetes and neuroscience sales force. The job reduction is part of Lilly’s plan,...
Senate looks to extend jobless benefits
WASHINGTON — A major economic relief bill that extends benefits to the jobless and expands a first-time home buyer tax credit took a step forward Monday in the Senate. The Senate took a procedural vote that effectively blocked Republicans from...
Promotional products provider seeks Chapter 7
Indianapolis-based Norwood Promotional Products Holdings Inc. has changed its mind. Instead of going for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, it will now seek Chapter 7 liquidation, according to a motion filed last week. Norwood, the second-largest promotional...
Indiana, other states sue biotech firm Amgen
Amgen Inc., the world’s largest biotechnology company, is being sued by Indiana, New York and 13 other states following an investigation into a national kickback scheme to boost drug sales, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said. Amgen and two...
Humana 3Q profit jumps on government programs
NEW YORK — Health insurer Humana Inc. said today its third-quarter profit rose 65 percent on a boost from government programs, mainly on higher enrollment and premiums from Medicare Advantage. The company earned $301.6 million, or $1.78 per share, up...
Byetta gains approval as stand-alone diabetes drug
Federal authorities have approved a synthetic hormone co-marketed by Eli Lilly and Co. and another pharmaceutical business for use without other medications, according to a Bloomberg News report. Byetta, injected twice daily, is a synthetic hormone...
Health insurance costs in dispute
WellPoint report claims too many people would pay more under overhaul legislation WASHINGTON — An Indianapolis couple in their 60s in less-than-perfect health could see their health insurance premiums go down under the health-care overhaul...
Netbooks and touch screens trim computer tech
SEATTLE — Personal computers are changing — and not just because of the recent launch of Windows 7. Visit an electronics store and you might also find laptops are missing a familiar component. You could experiment with new ways of...
Major lender files for Chapter 11
Business loans to continue, as action keeps CIT afloat; U.S. likely out $2.3 billion WASHINGTON — Lender CIT Group has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in an effort to restructure its debt while trying to keep loans flowing to...
Groups make final push for 'yes' vote on Wishard
Voters will decide Tuesday whether to back $754M plan Matthew Gutwein, as he had so many times before over the past few months, made his case for why Wishard Health Services needs a new $754 million hospital. Gutwein, a lawyer with experience arguing...
Redeeming value
Some credit- and debit-card users are planning to make their purchases pay off this holiday season One kid wants an iPod Touch. Another wants video games. Still another wants a Nintendo Wii. For any family that’s feeling the weight of the...
Gender gaps can be found in the CEO's office, too
When I look back on last year’s collapse of the financial industry, I think most about the CEOs of those giant subprime-loan-loving companies. I picture Richard Fuld of Lehman Brothers looking tense and annoyed as he faced questions from...
New beers lighten up on the calories
Super-low-cal brews may be less filling, but do they taste great? MILWAUKEE — How low can beer makers go? Some of the nation’s biggest brewers are courting the calorie-conscious crowd with ultra-low-calorie suds. The question is: Are...
Listening to his heart, and his dad, leads accountant to start own firm
They say when one door closes, another opens. That has certainly been the case recently. After serving as a partner for 30 years at a major CPA firm, I closed that door and created another (my newest big break, if you will) by forming a new company:...
New tax credit offers up to $2,500 in breaks for college costs
The average in-state tuition for a public, four-year college rose 6.5 percent this fall, the College Board recently announced. The average tuition for private colleges rose 4.4 percent. As you grapple with rising costs, make sure you don’t...
Should I convert my term life insurance to a permanent policy?
Term life insurance is affordable life insurance for a fixed number of years — and often a stable premium — but there is no cash value or investment component to this type of policy. However, some term policies let policyholders convert...
