Articles by Richard Ripley

Itron lands six pacts with water utilities

Orders show 'momentum,' that stimulus is starting to work, company says
March 25, 2010
Richard Ripley
Itron Inc., of Liberty Lake, has landed five orders from water utilities for advanced metering systems and a sixth for a leak-detection system since Feb. 17, achieving results in a part of the utility industry that's much more fragmented than and a
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Bankers dig deep to prepay big premiums

FDIC required institutions to send in check Dec. 30 for 2010, 2011, and 2012
March 25, 2010
Richard Ripley
Banks, already hit hard by sharply higher federal deposit insurance premiums earlier in 2009, were required to prepay three years worth of higher premiums on Dec. 30 last year, saddling them with a sharply higher expense for deposit Northwest Bank,
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—Photo courtesy of Hamilton Studio

United Way knocked on more execs' doors in campaign

Organization to expand use of 'CEO call' tactic again for 2010-11 fundraising
March 11, 2010
Richard Ripley
Spokane County United Way knocked on the doors of 150 percent more CEOs and other top managers here for its 2009-2010 fundraising campaign, in which it posted the biggest dollar increase in contributions in 15 years.In another change in tactics,
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—Staff photo by Richard Ripley

Look before you leap at Roth conversion

Lapse of income ceiling spurs intense discussion of pros, cons of converting standard IRA to Roth
March 11, 2010
Richard Ripley
The expiration this year of an income ceiling that had made many higher-income taxpayers ineligible to convert conventional individual retirement accounts to Roth IRAs is being hyped as providing a new financial planning option, but some experts to
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Farm Credit's earnings dip during 2009

Ag lender's net income drops to $106 million, but it calls year 'solid'
March 11, 2010
Richard Ripley
Northwest Farm Credit Services, of Spokane, has reported 2009 net income of $106.1 million, down from $124.4 million in 2008.The federally-chartered ag-lending cooperative set aside $79.4 million in 2009 for potential credit losses, up from in a
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Deposits top loans in new bank reports

Latest earnings results show pronounced shift from previous trend
March 11, 2010
Richard Ripley
Banks are heading back to the future—before the era of aggressive lending that predated today's softer economy—judging by the changed relationship between two important figures on their balance sheets.Partly because of slackening for a
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Avista helps customers get ready for required reports

Building owners face deadlines to provide energy data by facility
February 25, 2010
Richard Ripley
Businesses and state agencies face stringent new requirements to report their energy use, but Avista Utilities says it has set up a data-integration link on its Web page to help customers prepare to meet the requirements with a minimal amount of by
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INB chief sees return to black ink

Solid core earnings, better credit loss results projected at bank here
February 25, 2010
Richard Ripley
Randall L. Fewel, president and CEO of Inland Northwest Bank, has projected that the Spokane-based institution will return to profitability this year.The bank's parent, Northwest Bancorporation Inc., reported recently a fourth-quarter net loss a
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WashTrust posts sharply lower profit for '09

Balance sheet displays 'positive' trends; capital ratios exceed guidelines
February 25, 2010
Richard Ripley
Washington Trust Bank managed to make a profit last year, although the just under $3 million in net income it posted was less than a fifth of the $15.8 million in profit that it logged in 2008.As of Dec. 31, the Spokane-based bank's loans were a
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Capital raising could total $600 million

Sterling Savings' needs balloon as equity figure on balance sheet falls
February 11, 2010
Richard Ripley
A fundraising that regulators have required Sterling Savings Bank to perform could end up totaling $600 million, rather than $300 million, two of the Spokane bank's top executives say.The amount of equity capital Sterling will need to raise is 1
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