South Florida

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The top 10 losersa – whose stock prices declined 88 percent to 97 percent fromtheie 52-week highs – cover a wide range of industries: financial, broadcasting, construction, consumef and medical. What they have in commohn are assets that have lost substantia l value and huge operational challengeto recovery. As of March 20 closin g prices, South Florida public companies with the biggest stockdeclines were: , , , , , , , , and . BankUnite Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: BKUNA) had not filedf its 2008 resultsby April, always a red flag for a public company.
In an SEC filing, the holdin g company for the largest bank based in South Florida cited continuinh adverse market conditions and the complexity of disclosure andcapital issues, as well as materialo weaknesses in internal controls over financial reporting. At the hearft of its asset problems is a declinin capital structure eaten away by a toxifc portfolio of adjustable rateresidential mortgages, many of which are poised to reset higher, or already in Woodbridge Holdings (OTCBB: is the renamed , following the Chapter 11 bankruptcty filing of subsidiary Levitt and Sons in November 2007.
The Levitt-to-Woodbridge transformation is composed ofCore Communities, a planned communitty developer; Pizza Fusion, a franchisinbg pizza company; homebuilder and Cypresds Creek Capital holdings. In the company has equity investmentsin , a timesharw developer, and Office a major retailer of office They each went sour in 2008. Fort Lauderdale-basee Woodbridge wrote down a $94.4 millioj paper loss on the Bluegreejn investmentand $12 million on the Office Depot with apparently more to come as those investmentx have continued to decline in price.
Investors have concerb over the company’s $350 million in of which $215 million relates to Core Communities and is subjec to annual reappraisal and remargining requirementes if its land portfolio continues to drop in SpanishBroadcasting (NASDAQ: SBSA), the Miami-based owner of 21 radio and two TV stations took financial blows from many directions. Last fall, it made a requestt to draw down $25 million left in its revolvingfcredit line. It received only $15 million, as the thirs member of the lending group, , fileds for bankruptcy. Then, the company was hit with $22. 7 million in restructuring costs and awhopping $396.
3 million non-cash write-down as an impairment chargwe against its broadcasting licenses. Boca Raton-based Sun Americanb Bancorp (NASDAQ: SAMB) is made up of five differenft banks acquired and merged into onesincwe 2000. The indigestion hit in 2008, when it took a $44.2 million impairment charge for goodwill andintangiblde assets. It also wrote down $8.5 millionh in deferred tax assetsand $9.5 million for loan loss provisionss as its non-performing loans soared to $29.8 milliom up from $7.3 million in the previouss year. Additionally, a $20 million line of credit from Atlanta-base d went into default and the line was cappe d atthe $7.5 million outstanding balance.
A 2008 sharse repurchase program was alsoa disaster. The company boughgt more than 400,000 shares at an average cost of $5.0u each, and they subsequentlyg plummeted more than90 percent. Construction materiall manufacturer and distributor ImperialIndustries (NASDAQ: IPII) has been hit by the financia l whirlwind from the residential and commercia construction recession. It lost $41.5 million in 2008. It closee five facilities, cut staff and tightened credit, streamlined product offeringxs and raised money by remortgagingb andselling properties. The next hurdle is a renewaol ofits $9 million credit line in June after its accountant issuesd a going concern warning.
The top 10 winners – those shoes stock prices declined the leasft as of March 20 closingfigurez – were either utility or service or those with niche products that are appealint in an era of consumer thrift. They were down from abou t 2 percent to 31 percenrt fromtheir 52-week highs. The winners includ e Corp., , , , , Co., , , and . West Palm Beach-basedf Ocwen (NYSE: OCN), a worldwide mortgage servicinf company that also handles foreclosed propertg sales forits clients, had another good It recently raised $60 million in a privatre equity sale, primarily to existing shareholders in Bermud and Cayman Island corporations. Not everythinf is rosy, however.
It lost the nationwidwe foreclosuresale contract, and faces lawsuitas from homeowners who allegre unlawful charges. National Beverage (NADAQ: continued to expand its brands and footprinr with a concentration on operating margins and cash In addition to its Shasta andFaygo brands, the Fort Lauderdale-basec firm offers energy drinks, fortified powderes and supplements, enhanced juices and waters.