Comsat Corp

Comsat Corp., the Bethesda-based satellite communication and entertainment company, reported flat second-quarter earnings yesterday and also announced a restructuring aimed at improving the performance and market value of the company."

Columbia Gas files planColumbia Gas System Inc. and its pipeline subsidiary filed bankruptcy reorganization plans yesterday to pay $7.5 billion to creditors.Columbia Gas, based in Wilmington, Del., proposed paying some $3.6 billion, of which about $3.4 billion would settle loans. Charleston, W.Va.-based Columbia Gas Transmission Corp. would pay about $3.9 billion, including $2 billion to the parent firm and $1.2 billion to suppliers.A Bankruptcy Court judge, regulators, creditors and shareholders must approve the plan before the utility can emerge from Chapter 11.Travelers' earnings dropTravelers Inc. said yesterday its first-quarter operating income fell 1.3 percent from a year ago as earnings at the company's Smith Barney Inc. unit plunged.

Comsat Corp., the Bethesda-based satellite communications and entertainment company, said yesterday that it has increased its quarterly dividend by 5 percent despite a 6.5 percent drop in earnings compared with the same period a year ago.Comsat reported that its second-quarter earnings dipped to $21.6 million, or 46 cents a share, from $23.1 million, or 49 cents a share, a year ago. However, the company said this year's quarterly earnings reflect costs of...

Just when you thought you'd seen it all, along comes a genuine leather annual report.The 1993 annual report of footwear firm Wolverine World Wide features a front cover made of the same tan pigskin as its most popular boot, with instructions to pour coffee on it to test its resistance to liquids. While this raised the company's production cost for its 17,000 individual reports by $1.35 a copy, management feels it's worth it."A lot of people don't realize pigskin leather can be waterproof, and we felt this was a way to use the report as a marketing tool and get the message across to shareholders," explained Jim Lovejoy, vice president of corporate communications with that Rockford, Mich.

COMSAT Corp. ended a banner year on a slightly disappointing note yesterday as the Bethesda-based company fell short of earnings expectations for the final quarter of 1993.The satellite communications company posted fourth-quarter earnings of $18.1 million, or 44 cents a share, compared with $16.9 million, or 43 cents a share, in the fourth quarter of 1992. Analysts' estimates had ranged from 45 cents a share to 52 cents a share, according to Zacks Investment Research.COMSAT stock closed yesterday at $26.625, down 37.5 cents.

British Airways accused againBritish Airways, which paid out millions over "dirty tricks" against Virgin Atlantic Airways, conducted a similar attack on Air Europe, which went broke in 1991, according to a published report.The Guardian said yesterday that an investigation found British Airways spread rumors about financial troubles at Air Europe, Britain's second-largest airline in the late 1980s, tapped into its computer reservations files and used private investigators to probe the ownership of the carrier.

Communications Satellite Corp. said yesterday it plans to consolidate two Clarksburg-based divisions to form a new business unit, a move that will eliminate up to 300 jobs.Washington-based Comsat said the reductions will be achieved through a combination of early retirement, attrition and layoffs. Those reductions will come almost exclusively from Comsat's Systems Division and its labs, the two Montgomery County units being consolidated.Bruce Crockett, Comsat Corp. president and chief executive officer, said the company would attempt to keep layoffs to a minimum, but he acknowledged that the number could reach 200 or more.