Potlatch Among Stocks Ranked 20 Worst To Own

Potlatch Corp. and Morrison Knudsen Corp. are among the 20 companies whose returns to shareholders are the worst in the country, according to an annual list published by the Council of Institutional Investors.

The council comprises 100 of the nation’s pension funds. With more than $800 billion of assets, these funds often use the target list to prod companies to make management changes in order to improve the price of their stocks.

It seems to work. Only three of the 20 on last year’s list remained on this year’s.

The study by Ohio State University professor Tim Opler found that the year after being listed, companies generated at least 10 percent higher returns than the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index.

The pension group created its list by identifying all companies in the S&P 500 that provided worse returns than their industry averages for five years and one year ending July 29. Companies were ranked by taking the difference between the industry average of five-year returns and the companies’ fiveyear returns. The 20 worst performers make the list.

Besides Potlatch and Morrison Knudsen, they are: Alza Corp.; Cooper Industries Inc.; Cray Research Inc.; EG&G Inc.; Genuine Parts Co.; Longs Drug Stores; Melville Corp.; Nacco Industries; Northern Telecom Lts.; Ogden Corp.; Safety-Kleen Corp.; Salomon Inc.; Tenneco Inc.; Toys ‘R’ Us Inc.; Tyco International Ltd.; Upjohn Co.; U.S. Surgical Corp.; Yellow Corp.

Budgeting class offered

Consumer Credit Counseling of Spokane will offer a seminar on household budgeting Tuesday in its offices at N1912 Division.

Instructor Michael Hayes said she will talk about ways of identifying wasteful spending, introduce four budget models, and help participants identify the one that might best suit their requirements.

She will also emphasize savings for both emergency and long-term needs.

Students will receive notebooks with forms and other materials to help them get started, Hayes said.

The class runs from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. Cost is $18 per person or couple. For information, call 327-3777 or 1-800-892-6854.

, DataTimes