Ex-Westinghouse unit Wesco leads stock gainers

Tuesday, March 22, 2005

A stepchild of Westinghouse Electric turned in the best performance by a regional stock last year.

	Online Graphic: 2004 Stock Price Change

Wesco International shares rocketed 235 percent in 2004 as cost cuts, productivity measures and marketing initiatives launched in the economic downturn that began in 2001 began to take hold. Profits at the Station Square-based electrical products distributor more than doubled in 2004 to $64.9 million on a 14 percent jump in sales.

Wesco's 2004 performance matched that of C-Cor, whose 235 percent advance in 2003 made it the region's top-performing stock that year. Shares of the State College broadband equipment maker couldn't sustain their energy in 2004, when they fell 16 percent and finished 46th.

The rankings are based solely on stock price movement and do not reflect dividends.

For the broader regional market, 2004 was not as good as 2003. That's evident at the top of the list, where a 58 percent advance earned a spot in the Top 10 versus the 2003 cutoff of 75 percent. It's also evident at the bottom of the list, where eight stocks lost ground last year. Only one declined in 2003.

A 187 percent jump made shares of American Eagle Outfitters a very fashionable No. 2 on the list. The Marshall teen apparel retailer's stock rose 19 percent the previous year, good enough for a 39th-place finish.

Four stocks made repeat appearances in the Top 10, led by MSA. The O'Hara safety products company finished third, up 91 percent in 2004 on the heels of a 147 percent advance in 2003 that landed MSA in 5th place.

Allegheny Technologies, one of four steel producers to breach 2004's Top 20, dropped one spot to 7th. Its 64 percent advance last year followed a 112 percent climb in 2003.

The other consecutive Top 10 performances were turned in by software concerns: Ansys, in 8th place, up 62 percent; and Ansoft, whose 59 percent climb landed it in 9th place.

Michael Baker, the Moon engineering and energy services provider, made the biggest turnaround of any regional stock, finishing fourth after coming up in last place in 2003. Then it was the only regional stock to decline. Baker's profits increased sixfold last year to $12.3 million as the firm benefited from several major contract awards, including one to develop a digital map of the United States for the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Last year's worst performances were turned in by Mylan Laboratories and Tollgrade Communications. Both saw their stock price fall 30 percent.

Mylan, of Canonsburg, was plagued by problems in the generic drug industry and widespread investor opposition to its proposed acquisition of King Pharmaceuticals. Mylan walked away from Bristol, Tenn.-based King last month. But it's finding it hard to walk away from billionaire financier Carl Icahn. Mylan's second-largest shareholder has nominated his own slate of directors to replace Mylan's 11-person board.

Tollgrade, a Cheswick concern that makes testing equipment for the telecommunications and cable television industries, fell victim to a three-year slump in telecom spending. Profits fell 58 percent last year to $1.3 million. Longtime Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Chris Allison, son of the company's co-founder, left the company in January.

Four bank stocks also slumped last year, including Mellon Financial, which retreated 3 percent. The other big-name loser was Alcoa. It's stock slid 17 percent. The aluminum maker was the top-performing stock in the Dow Jones 30 industrials in 1999.

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