Finance News Archive

The markets finally put together a winning week on Wall Street. Stocks were up last week for the first time in 2015. Sure, the gains were limited thanks to the 141-point drop in the Dow industrials on Friday, but were able to hold on to the benefits of the 320-point rally on Thursday.

Major Economic Releases

Three venture capital experts discussed what trends are taking shape for 2015 and what those trends might mean for VCs and would-be portfolio companies.

The San Diego Stock Exchange Index closed higher Friday at 188.00, up 0.48 percent from Thursday. Declining issues beat advancers 49 to 40, and 94 issues were unchanged. Otonomy Inc. (Nasdaq: OTIC) was the top dollar gainer, up $3.59 to $32.93. WD-40 Co. (Nasdaq: WDFC) was the top dollar loser, down $1.38 to $85.47. For the complete, updated San Diego Stock Exchange Index visit sddt.com/stocks.

It’s a good news and bad news story. A new report shows technology salaries and bonuses are rising in San Diego and other regions as the population of skilled workers continues to shrink.

January 2015 has been rather frightening for investors, but I do believe it will be a prosperous year, so I thought it would be a good time to look at the large, well-known company Coca-Cola.

The news of a massive stimulus program by the European Central Bank led to a big rally on Wall Street yesterday. Just as many people credit the Fed's quantitative easing efforts over the past few years for the recording-setting rally in stocks, the same logic is being applied to the move by the ECB.

Major Economic Releases

La Jolla-based Callan Capital has welcomed Kaitlin C. Coryell as a portfolio associate.

Former Qualcomm Inc. CEO Paul E. Jacobs, who stepped down in March, and his replacement, Steven M. Mollenkopf, were paid a combined $117.7 million in the company’s latest fiscal year as part of a plan to retain its employees.

Luke Girling was not expecting a famous musician to drive a tractor on his Oceanside farm last weekend -- and then to be thanked for the experience.

The key takeaway from San Diego Venture Group’s 2015 Venture Outlook is that the region has been performing fairly well by most measures compared to the overall venture capital industry, though there have been several downward trends over the last decade to keep an eye on.

The San Diego Stock Exchange Index closed higher Thursday at 187.1, up 0.64 percent from Wednesday. Advancing issues beat decliners 64 to 31, and 88 issues were unchanged. BofI Holding Inc. (Nasdaq: BOFI) was the top dollar gainer, up $3.47 to $84.78. Auspex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: ASPX) was the top dollar loser, down $5.93 to $56.90. For the complete, updated San Diego Stock Exchange Index, visit sddt.com/stocks.

Sequenom Inc. announced a development agreement with Cypher Genomics Inc. for next generation noninvasive prenatal tests, where Sequenom will utilize Cypher’s genome interpretation technology, Mantis, to advance analysis of clinically-relevant fetal sub-chromosomal variants detected in maternal blood, and Vibra Bank announced it has received written approval by the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco for its proposed merger with Pacific Commerce Bank, according to company announcements, SEC filings and Bloomberg News.

No big bump for stocks from the ECB. As expected, the European Central Bank this morning announced a massive economic stimulus program patterned after the quantitative easing by the U.S. Federal Reserve Board.

Major Economic Releases

Otonomy Inc. (Nasdaq: OTIC), a San Diego-based clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative therapeutics for diseases and disorders of the inner and middle ear, announced the launch of its proposed follow-on public offering of approximately $75 million of its common stock.

The San Diego Stock Exchange Index closed lower Wednesday at 185.91, down .92 percent from Tuesday. Declining issues beat advancers, 58-36 and 89 issues were unchanged. Auspex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: ASPX) was the top dollar gainer, up $1.99 to $62.83. Illumina Inc. (Nasdaq: ILMN) was the top dollar loser, down $4.96 to $191.77. For the complete, updated San Diego Stock Exchange Index, visit sddt.com/stocks.

Cubic Corp.: (NYSE: CUB) announced that it joined the Smart Cities Council, a coalition working to improve livability, workability and sustainability of cities, as a global lead partner; and CareFusion Corp.: (NYSE: CFN) announced that 76 percent stockholders approved the merger transaction with Becton, Dickinson and Co. (NYSE: BDX), according to company announcements, SEC filings and Bloomberg News.

The state of the stock market. To be sure, the last few years have treated stock investors extremely well. The Dow industrials have been up for six years in a row but entered 2015 with increased volatility.