Business briefs for March 31, 2004

Wednesday, March 31, 2004 | 11:23 a.m.

Las Vegas firm may move to small cap market

Vestin Group Inc., a Las Vegas commercial lender, said Tuesday that its stock could be delisted from the Nasdaq National Market.

"The company has received notice from Nasdaq that it no longer meets the minimum value of publicly held shares required for the company's inclusion on the Nasdaq National Market," a regulatory filing said.

Vestin said it has "been afforded the opportunity to regain compliance or transfer to the Nasdaq Small Cap Market."

The company declined comment on the matter, but a regulatory filing said it is considering transferring to the small capitalization market.

Vestin said it expects to report losses of $2.4 million for the fourth quarter and $5.2 million for the year ended Dec. 31. Vestin said it expects a "positive performance" for the first quarter, in part because it anticipates reversing a $4.8 million reserve against what had been a problem loan for the Arroyo Heights luxury residential development in Mesquite. The Arroyo Heights matter was resolved in February, Vestin said.

Vestin stock traded this morning at $1.65, up 7 cents.

Factory orders rebound

WASHINGTON -- America's factories saw orders bounce back a bit in February, a sign that manufacturing is continuing to emerge from a three-year slump.

The Commerce Department reported today that orders placed with factories increased by a modest 0.3 percent last month, compared with a drop of 0.9 percent in January.

Although February's rebound wasn't as strong as the 1.5 percent increase economists were forecasting, it was still encouraging that factory orders managed to recover some ground last month.

Demand for "durable" goods -- costly manufactured products, including automobiles, household appliances and computers -- rose by 2.5 percent in February. That was an improvement from the 2.6 percent decline registered in January and marked the biggest increase since October.

But "nondurable" goods, such as food and clothing, fell by 2 percent in February, compared with a 1.2 percent increase in January. The weakness in nondurables in February was broadbased, restraining overall factory orders for the month.