Continuing Operations

The head of AT&T Corp. said yesterday that the company will cut 15,000 to 18,000 jobs -- about 14 percent of its work force -- this year, mostly through buyouts and attrition.AT&T Chairman and Chief Executive Officer C. Michael Armstrong announced the planned cuts, which had been rumored since last week, at a New York meeting of managers and analysts.Armstrong said the company plans to cut 10,000 to 11,000 employees through pension incentives. He said he hoped the rest of the reduction would come from what he called "managed attrition," including continuation of a hiring freeze.

Baltimore design firm Chambers, which specializes in the planning, architecture and interior design of private clubs, announced Friday that it has acquired a rival based in Texas. CCI Club Design will be changing its name to Chambers but will continue its Dallas operations, according to a statement from Chambers. Chambers will remain headquartered in Baltimore, the statement said, and no one will lose their job because of the acquisition. "Once friendly competitors, we're now combining the tremendous talents of both firms to enhance the services we provide to our clients within the private club industry," said Rick Snellinger, president and CEO of Chambers.

Bolstered by the popularity of its Zatarain's New Orleans-style food products, spice maker McCormick & Co. Inc. reported yesterday 18 percent growth in earnings per share from continuing operations for the third quarter, beating analysts' estimates. The Sparks-based maker of spices and flavorings for consumers and the food industry said net income from continuing operations rose to $46.2 million, or 33 cents a share, from $40 million, or 28 cents a share, in the fiscal quarter that ended Aug. 31. Analysts had expected 32 cents a share, according to Thomson First Call.

Baltimore's Lexington Market proudly calls itself the oldest continuously operating public market in the nation — and home to some of the best crab cakes in the world at its famed Faidley's Seafood cafe. Yet even a venerable landmark that's been in business since 1785 needs an occasional upgrade. That's why the announcement last week of plans for a $20 million to $25 million renovation of the market is welcome news for everyone who values its historical significance. But simply making cosmetic changes to the building's interior won't be enough to attract new vendors and customers to the site.

UNC Inc.This Annapolis company that overhauls aircraft engines and aircraft components posted lower net income for both the third quarter and first nine months of the year while earnings from continuing operations were up for both periods.The company said that the improvement in earnings from continuing operations was primarily a result of higher income from the engine overhaul, engine parts manufacture and contract services businesses.Earnings from continuing operations for the most recent quarter were $1.5 million, or $0.09 per share, compared with $1.3 million, or $0.07 per share, in the same period last year.

KirschnerMedical Corp. ... ... ... ... Ticker ... ... ... ... ... Yesterday's... ... ... ... ... .. .. ... Symbol ... ... ... ... ... Cls. ... Chg.... ... ... ... .. ... ... .. KMDC ... ... ... .. .. .. 6 1/4 .. . +unchPeriod ended3/31/94 ... ... ... .. ... .. 1st qtr. ... ... ... Year ago ... ... Chg.Revenue ... ... ... .. ... .. $16,676 ... .. .. .. $17,136 .. .. .. -2.7%Net Income ... .. .. ... .. . $714* ... ... ... .. $2,954** .. ... -75.8%Primary EPS .. .. .. ... .. . $0.21* ... ... .. .. $0.92** ... .. -77.2%* Results from only continuing operations were $771,000, or 22 cents a share.

HCIA Inc., the Baltimore health data company, reported another quarter in the red yesterday -- its sixth loss in the past seven quarters -- but said the planned sale of its consulting unit, along with other cost-cutting measures, should return it to profitability this year.HCIA said its loss from continuing operations -- it treated the consulting unit as discontinued, although it will continue to operate the unit until it finds a buyer -- was $3.8 million in the fourth quarter that ended Dec. 31, or 29 cents a share, after a $2.7 million restructuring charge, compared with a loss from continuing operations of $331,000, or 3 cents a share, in the same quarter of 1997.

Environmental Elements Corp. yesterday reported losses in its fiscal third quarter and in the nine months ending Dec. 31, but the company's performance showed marked improvement from a year ago.The air pollution control systems company's loss from continuing operations in the quarter totaled $206,000, or 3 cents per share, slashing by more than half the $538,000 loss sustained in the previous third quarter.Revenues for the period were $12.8 million, a 44 percent drop from the comparable 1994 quarter.

Times Mirror Co., owner of The Sun and The Evening Sun, said yesterday that profits from continuing operations fell slightly in the final three months of 1994 compared with a year earlier, and likely would remain low in this year's first quarter.The company's stock fell $3.125 a share to finish the day at $20.25 in heavy trading.The news contributed to a mixed picture in the newspaper industry. Earlier this week, Knight-Ridder Inc. reported its profits rose by nearly 4 percent, while the Washington Post Co. said its fourth-quarter profits rose by 23 percent.

Integrated Health Services, a Hunt Valley-based provider of specialized long-term care, primarily to geriatric patients, reported a sharp increase in earnings for its third quarter, when it was able to take advantage of tax credits from previous reporting periods.It was Integrated's first reporting period since becoming a publicly traded company on April 25.Earnings from continuing operations for the quarter, which ended March 31, were $698,000, compared with $363,000 in the same period last year, an increase of 92 percent.

Millennial Media Inc., a Baltimore-based mobile advertising company, said Monday it intended to sell a million shares while stockholders planned to sell another nine million shares in a secondary stock offering. Millennial expects to raise $14.5 million from the stock sale, which it intends to use to fund the company's growth, including possible acquisitions of other companies. The company also reported a preliminary third-quarter loss in the range of $1.9 million to $2.4 million, on revenues of $47 million.

Even now, those most affected by the elimination of seven Maryland athletic teams speak about it in language usually reserved for tragedies. They talk about "shock" and "denial," or use other words that sound more like stages of grief than reaction to a college athletics budget decision. But that's how the cuts feel. Personal. "People ask me what keeps me up at night, and this is what keeps me up at night," athletic director Kevin Anderson told reporters Monday as he confirmed that seven teams were being discontinued.

Baltimore International College has reached a legal settlement that will allow it to remain accredited until the end of the year, when officials expect the downtown culinary college to be taken over by Virginia-based Stratford University. Baltimore International College has reached a legal settlement that will allow it to remain accredited until the end of the year, when officials expect the downtown culinary school to be taken over by Virginia-based Stratford University. The settlement ended a court battle between Baltimore International and the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, which planned to strip the college of its accreditation at the end of August — a move that could have forced the school to close.

As Will Alberts remembered how much his mother, Nancy, loved her horses, dogs and cats, he demonstrated how much he loved her. Addressing the large crowd that had gathered in the Laurel Park clubhouse to celebrate the late trainer's life Alberts said he will "continue her business in Maryland" and asked for help from local horsemen. Nancy Alberts, who died last week at 65 after suffering a stroke, rose to fame by training long shot Magic Weisner to a runner-up finish in the 2002 Preakness.

Generations of kids have spent summer evenings pounding their cleats and sliding into home on a West Baltimore baseball field. Now, a longtime youth baseball organization is hoping to refurbish the fields on which it has instilled teamwork and responsibility in those children for more than half a century. James Mosher Baseball, Maryland's oldest continuously operating league for African-American children, started in 1960 to keep kids occupied in the summer. But after decades of play, its fields need help.

The primary steel-making operations at Sparrows Point will remain idled for the rest of the year until market conditions improve, the Russian company that owns the Baltimore County mill announced Tuesday. The continued shutdown adds to renewed uncertainty for about 2,500 workers at the plant, which has seen periodic shutdowns and a succession of owners in recent years. Severstal North America, a subsidiary of one of the world's largest steelmakers, is reportedly looking to sell the Maryland mill and other financially strapped U.S. plants.

Blue CrossBlue Cross and Blue Shield of Maryland said yesterday that its fourth-quarter profits fell 40 percent in 1991 and that it expects profits to be further squeezed later this year.The Owings Mills-based health insurer, closing a less profitable but better-than-expected year, earned $8.5 million during the fourth quarter and nearly $30 million for the year, down from earnings of $14.2 million and $48.6 million in the same periods a year earlier, company spokeswoman Tina Saarlas said.

Essex Corp. of Columbia reported financial results yesterday.For 1997.The 50-employee company, struggling to market what it calls breakthrough opto-electronic technology, was late reporting last year's numbers because its accountants were unsure whether Essex had the resources to be considered a going concern.Yesterday, Essex reported revenue of $1.013 million for the fourth quarter of 1997, 44 percent more than the $703,000 posted for the fourth quarter of 1996.Net income in the fourth quarter was $475,000, or 13 cents per share, compared with a loss of $1.348 million, or 37 cents per share, in the final period of 1996.

The tempest brewing around the fate of Baltimore's sole surviving single-screen movie theater continued to churn Monday, with one potential operator denying it had been forced to withdraw from consideration while another revealed an unexpected, last-minute appeal to take over the building. Towson University and its radio station, WTMD, dropped out of the running to operate the Senator Theatre because of economic concerns and not because of pressure from the Baltimore Development Corp.