Week in Review

Daily Record, The (Baltimore), May 16, 2008

Costs rising like dough

A perfect storm of conditions has contributed to rising costs that have pinched producers like family-owned, Baltimore-based H&S Bakery Inc. In the case of rye flour, a main ingredient in many of its products, the company said the last time prices were this high was during World War II. Like many bakers, H&S has had to absorb higher costs and was forced to switch suppliers to a Canadian firm to ensure the company would not have to go to blended flour.

No violation

Former CareFirst Inc. CEO William L. Jews testified last Friday that his $18 million severance package did not violate any laws. Jews testified at the hearing called by Maryland Insurance Commissioner Ralph S. Tyler to determine if his salary violated a law created to ensure executive pay is "fair and reasonable" for work performed.

Silo Point nearly done

Turner Development Group's Silo Point project, a 24-story former grain elevator turned mixed-use development, hosted the 10th anniversary of the local chapter of George Soros' Open Society Institute. The condos at Silo Point, including 5,500-square-foot penthouse units, have not been priced yet and will go on the market in July. Upon completion, the project will have cost an estimated $170 million and will encompass 430,000 square feet of retail, storage and restaurant space in addition to 228 condos.

Canton Crossing adding more

Developer and banker Edwin F. Hale Sr., CEO of First Mariner Bancorp., said Tuesday he had purchased a 31-acre former shipping terminal and refinery site from Exxon Mobil Corp., which will added to the $1 billion Canton Crossing project. Hale is looking to add a "Main Street" that will be lined with retail outlets and restaurants adjacent to Canton Crossing's 22 acres. Some possible tenants named include Target and upscale grocer Harris Teeter.

IPO news

American Capital Agency, a newly formed real estate investment trust, began trading on the Nasdaq market Thursday. The company, a subsidiary of Bethesda-based American Capital Strategies Ltd., priced its IPO at $20 per share for 10 million shares and raised $200 million. Share prices dropped after the IPO however, and closed at $19.35, down 65 cents, or 3.25 percent. Also this week, Baltimore- based Metastorm Inc., a provider of business process management software, said it planned to go public with potential $86.2 million offering. American Capital Agency was the first Maryland company to go public since blank check firm Camden Learning Corp.'s IPO on Nov. 30.

Home slump

The National Association of Realtors said Tuesday that median prices for existing single-family homes dropped in 100 of 149 metropolitan areas in the January to March period. The largest percentage plunge was in Maryland, which saw a 38.6 percent drop during the first three months of 2008 compared to the first quarter of 2007.

Iomai acquisition

Biotech firm Iomai Corp. said this week it is being bought by vaccine developer Intercell AG for an estimated $189 million. Gaithersburg-based Iomai main product is a needle-free travelers' diarrhea vaccine, expected to enter late-stage studies in the first half of 2009. Austria-based Intercell will bring the patch together with its Japanese encephalitis vaccine. Combined, the vaccines have a $1 billion per year potential market.