Balance Sheet

In financial crises, the old ways are the best. Managers who know a company's balance sheet, understand management and have good contacts at their companies can be confident enough to step in and buy oversold companies. Those focused on whether a company will meet next quarter's expectations, though, may be at a loss. Quantitative funds can also run into trouble. The reason is that markets and investors are processing the latest news faster than a computer. Some quantitative funds look for companies that analysts are predicting will grow their earnings at a faster rate than the previous quarter.

Sinclair Broadcast Group Inc. reported yesterday that its broadcast cash flow and total revenue -- two significant benchmarks of financial strength in the broadcasting industry -- were down in the company's fourth quarter. However, Sinclair did reverse the quarterly and yearly losses that troubled 1998's balance sheet. "This is quite simply the best balance sheet Sinclair has had in a long time," said Patrick J. Talamantes, the company's chief financial officer. In the fourth quarter, the company enjoyed a net gain of $179.

Fueled by continued hotel purchases and higher revenue from those rooms, Host Marriott Corp. reported yesterday that its second-quarter funds from operations rose 35 percent to $115 million.On a per-share basis, the Bethesda-based lodging company's funds from operations of 51 cents per share marked a 31 percent increase from the same three-month period in 1997. The figure was also above the 50 cents per share analysts expected the company to earn in the quarter, which ended June 19. Revenue rose 49 percent, to $402 million.

Mercantile Bankshares Corp.'s net income rose almost 11 percent in the first quarter, led by gains in its lending and trust business, the company reported yesterday.The Baltimore-based financial institution, Maryland's largest independently owned banking company, reported net income of $35.5 million for the first quarter ended March 31, a 10.9 percent boost compared with the same period last year, when it earned $32 million.Net income per share rose 8.9 percent to 49 cents, up from 45 cents in the same period a year ago, beating analysts' estimates by a penny.

Fila Holding SpA moved to contain the damage yesterday from a steep stock dive sparked by the arrest of a former executive of its Italian parent company, as Hunt Valley-based executives of the clothing and sneaker company insisted that its extremely strong profit growth has been for real.An Italian news agency reported Wednesday that police in Milan had arrested Emil Schneeberg, a former executive of Gemina SpA, which owns slightly more than 50 percent of Fila, and charged him with balance sheet fraud.

Signing on to work at a start-up company is a lot like buying shares in a business with no track record. It can turn out to be a boon, but it's much more likely to be a financial bust.One of my fondest work experiences is the year that I spent on staff at a brand-new magazine. Never before -- or since -- have I been surrounded by so many talented, dynamic co-workers pulling together for a common goal. The publication has since folded, but the ambitious projects we did there helped most of us move on to better jobs.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Orioles owner Peter G. Angelos took the rare step yesterday of going public with his team's finances, and he urged other major-league owners to follow suit."

Baltimore Bancorp, parent of the Bank of Baltimore, capped off its second profitable year in a row with an increase of nearly 300 percent in its fourth-quarter earnings.In the final three months of last year, Baltimore Bancorp earned $1.2 million, or 7 cents a share, compared with earnings of $312,000, or 2 cents a share, a year earlier, the company said yesterday.Despite decreases in "core earnings" -- the profits from such traditional banking services as borrowing and lending -- Baltimore Bancorp improved its balance sheet and loan portfolio during the quarter, measures that should make it more attractive as a takeover candidate.

It's too bad that one of the most important parts of any project is also the most boring.A little less tedium in the process might persuade people embarking on a rehab or renovation to keep better records of every purchase, agreement and transaction.Good record-keeping can let you know exactly where you stand financially as work progresses, and that knowledge can help eliminate that panicky conviction that you're headed straight for the poor house. It also smoothes the way between homeowner and suppliers or subcontractors (such as electricians or plumbers)

WASHINGTON -- Host Marriott Corp., which started off with $2.2 billion in debt when it was spun off from Marriott Corp. in October, is adding another $375 million in balance-sheet debt because of the financial woes of a former partner.Host Marriott disclosed in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission last week that it seized a 28.6 percent interest in the Marriott Marquis hotel in New York's Times Square after Atlanta real estate developer John Portman defaulted on a loan related to the landmark atrium hotel.