Hunt Valley

Sinclair Broadcast Group Inc.'s stock soared a day after it announced plans to buy 18 television stations owned by Barrington Broadcasting Group for $370 million. The Hunt Valley broadcaster's stock leapt 12.7 percent to end Friday at $15.88 a share. Thursday's announcement was Sinclair's second this week of a planned acquisition. Sinclair had said Monday it would purchase four TV stations from Cox Media Group for $99 million. The 24 Barrington stations — a mix of ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox and CW affiliates — are located in 15 markets ranging from upstate New York to South Carolina and as far west as Colorado.

Captain Kirk himself will beam into Baltimore this summer to appear at the Shore Leave science fiction convention in Hunt Valley, according to the event's website. The 35th annual convention will offer writing workshops, panel discussions, role playing games and a chance to meet authors and stars. Shatner, who has been known to turn down much bigger gigs, is a major score -- particularly for a convention founded by folks brought together by a love of "Star Trek. " He will appear Aug. 3. If fans want his autograph, or to take a picture with Shatner, they'll have to open their wallets.

Sinclair Broadcast Group Inc. said profits soared in the fourth quarter, capping a presidential election year in which the Hunt Valley TV station owner saw record levels of political advertising, a rebound in auto advertising sales and rapid growth through acquisitions. Net income rose to $59 million, or 73 cents per share, from $22.7 million, or 28 cents per share, in the fourth quarter that ended Dec. 31, the company reported Wednesday. Earnings beat analysts' expectations of 59 cents per share.

A British defense contractor said Tuesday that it will close its locations in Baltimore and Hunt Valley this year and lay off nearly 140 employees in reaction to a tightening market for military purchases. Cobham plc said it would discontinue the products it manufactures in Hunt Valley - equipment such as microwave receivers - and move its Baltimore operations to a bigger facility in Lansdale, Penn. All three locations are part of the company's defense electronics arm. "It is with genuine disappointment that Cobham must take these actions due to the contraction of the US defense market for our products," the company said in its statement.

Tessco Technologies Inc. of Hunt Valley reported Friday that its profits increased in its third quarter over the year before, although revenue was down by about 10 percent. Tessco, a provider of products for wireless broadband systems, earned $5.4 million, or 65 cents per share, in the third quarter ended in Dec. 30. That compares with $4.8 million, or 59 cents per share, for the corresponding quarter a year earlier. Revenue totaled $204.5 million, down from $226 million a year earlier.

As the patient and sympathetic host of shows like "Food 911" and "How to Boil Water," Tyler Florence has been a welcome presence on the Food Network for 16 years. But some fans have trouble pinning him down, Florence said. They'll say, "What do you do? You're not the Italian guy, you're not the New Orleans guy. " The chef will be in the Baltimore area Saturday, signing copies of his new cookbook, "Tyler Florence Fresh," which was to be released Tuesday. Florence's ninth book is a departure from his previous titles.

Let the taxes go up on January 1. The country will survive. Worse things happened. After all, Democrats and Republicans voted for the sunset on the Bush tax cuts, and the president signed the bill. The rich will continue to find a way to avoid taxes. Mitt Romney's 47 percenters won't pay any taxes. And folks like us can make our opinion felt next election. Harry Blum, Hunt Valley

Dunbar Armored has been in the armored-car business for nearly 90 years. But the Hunt Valley-based company now is branching into a new way to protect banks' and businesses' money and valuables: cybersecurity. The company is launching a subsidiary, Dunbar Digital Armored, early next year to tap into the growing need to protect online transactions for its thousands of bank and retail customers. Dunbar will focus its cybersecurity products on small and mid-size companies that are looking for tech-savvy solutions but don't have the deep pockets or cybersecurity expertise of the big banks.

Omega Healthcare Investors Inc., the real estate investment trust based in Hunt Valley that invests in long-term health care facilities, earned $30.1 million during the third quarter of the year, the firm said in a statement Friday. Omega's third quarter 2012 earnings were 40.5 percent higher than earnings in same period last year, the company said. The firm's funds from operations, a figure often used to determine a real estate investment trust's health, increased 27.5 percent over the July through September period last year, the statement said.

Streets throughout Hunt Valley will be closed temporarily Sunday for the 20th Annual Susan G. Komen Maryland Race for the Cure. Baltimore County police are advising motorists and others to be prepared for detours and delays before, during and after the event. The event includes a 5K Run, a 5K Walk and a 1 Mile Family Fun Walk. The 5K race will start at 8 a.m. The 5K Walk and the 1 Mile Walk will start at 8:30 a.m. All three follow the same course. The entire event is expected to last about three and a half hours.