The Atlanta Constitution from Atlanta, Georgia • 68

47 PER CENT DROP B1 I 1 1 111 Al 1 IAI 1.1 I 1 I 1 II1UI 9H rBUfta AMC Earnings Take Nose Dive BUSINESS THIS MORNING Edited By Ocwnt Rtwrt Quotable Garv M. Nenelowski. director of eco Net sales of $1.6 billion in the three quarters were at the same levels as the year before. AMC Chairman Roy D. Chapin Jr.

said tte earnings were in line with company forecasts Financial analysts, however, had predicted the smallest of the U.S. automakers would only ba at the breakeven point in the quarter. Chapin also said the company would main profitable in the current quarter, although it would end the fiscal year with a net loss because of prior heavy losses. I 'The sharp third quarter upturn princi-. pally reflects steady improvement in automo nomic research for Goldman Sachs: "Profits for nonfinancial corporations should rise substantially next year.

For all U. S. corporations, after-tax profits are expected to rise by about 20 per cent next year after declining approximately 25 per cent this year." a dividend for the first half of iti fiscal year because of heavy losses. The latest dividend would have been paid for the six months ended Sept 30. The firm paid two semi-annual dividend's of 10 cents a share during the fiscal year of 1974.

That was the first time the company made a payment since the last quarter of fiscal 1965. The other automakers also have either paid reduced dividends or eliminated them altogether this year because of declining profits and the industry sales slump the worst since World War IL Despite the earnings decline from a year ago, AMC's dollar sales in the period were $646 million, up 11 per cent from $581 million. Unit sales in the United Statess of cars and Jeeps were off 9 per cent to 116,853. For the first nine months of AMCs fiscal year, the firm reported net losses of $43.2 million, or $1.45 a share, compared with earnings of $34.6 million, or $1.19 a share, in the comparable 1974 period. DETROIT (AP) American Motors Corp.

said Wednesday its earnings during the April-June quarter fell 47 per cent from a year ago to $10.1 million, or 33 cents a share. Although down sharply from the year earlier period, the earnings reversed three prior consecutive quarterly losses, including a record $47.8 million loss in the first quarter of this year. AMC is the last of the four U.S. automakers to report its results for the April-June period. All four have reported improvements over the disastrous first quarter when the industry had its first aggregate loss since the Great Depression 40 years ago.

AMC earned $19 million, or 62 cents a share, in the spring quarter of 1974. The latest period is the third quarter In AMC's fiscal year, which ends Sept 30. The other companies end their fiscal years on Dec. 31. AMC also said its directors voted Wednesday to omit a semi-annual dividend for a second timejhis year.

The company also omitted. marketing and communications companies, opened this week in Atlanta. The company, headed by Hugh Lovewell, is affiliated with the New York firm of Jerry Fields Associates. Aviation The British government gave preliminary approval for a grant of up to $44 million to aid development of a more powerful Rolls-Royce Ltd. engine to be used in some Boeing 747s.

Direct government contributions for the new engine are recoverable by a levy on engine sales, Industry Secretary Eric Varley said. tive factory sales, and benefits of ongoing and programs, Newsmakers more stringent cost reduction Chapin said. Retailing Chapin added that company sales outside the United States are running at a record "pace, up 10 per cent from year-before levels. Overall, the auto companies had aggregate earnings of $391 million in the spring quarter; Neiman-Marcus has opened a new boutique in Colony Square. The store is the company's second store in Atlanta.

Cheryl Phillips is manager of the store. SALES VP 20 PCT. Coca-Cola Net Climbs 16 Pet. Bally American representative of the International fashion shoe retailer and wholesaler, announced plans for a new store at Omni International It is scheduled to open in the spring. Janeway Says: Utility Bonds Bode III for Stocks Dullsville reigned in Wall Street again Wednesday.

The action has moved from the stock market to the bond market, and it's all bad. With food, fuel and financing costs all taking off again, the early-year anti-inflation rally in bond prices has a good deal of ground to give up. Utility bonds with less than A ratings are already quoted to yield more than ll-Vi-00. This is bound to spell trouble for utility stocks yielding only 10-0-0 or thereabouts. Wall Street never expected to see utility stocks offering such.

rich yields after such a sensational rally. The absence of buyers is advertising the dismay being spread by the resurgence of bond yields. The Coca-Cola Co. named Albert H. Swett vice president and general counsel.

He was formerly general counsel of Xerox Corp. Robert A. Keller, manager of Coca-Cola's legal division, was named vice president Betty C. Westbrook was named principal broker at Clark Harrison Co. Inc.

Clark Harrison, president of the firm, said he will be devoting more time to Port City Realty an organization he has started on St. Simons Island. The Economy B. F. Goodrich Co.

and Goodyear Tire Rubber Co. reported tire sales are rebounding from last year's poor performance, but have not yet reached normal levels. Both companies reported second quarter earnings below those of the previous year, but -higher than in the first quarter. They said the market is improving because motorists waited so long during the recession to replace old tires. Energy South Vietnam announced it was ready to discuss exploration and exploitation of oil in its coastal waters with any foreign governments or countries "irrespective of their social and political color." The government's Liberation Radio said those inter-ested would have to respect South Vietnam's I independence and adhere to the principle of "equality of mutual benefit." Executive Suite Compensation for chief executive officers rose 8 per cent in 1974 over 1973, Wyt-mar executive recruiting consultants, reported.

A study of 775 corporations with annual sales volume in excess of $50 million snowed average total compensation of chief executive officers at $220,000 a year. Curtis Galleries, a new decorative arts and furniture showroom, has opened at 3065 Clearview Parkway at Buford Highway and 1-285. The shop offers custom-built furniture. What's New Brochures Unlimited a Detroit-based firm that offers brochure and catalog services to industrial and manufacturing companies, has opened an office in Atlanta. John D.

Larimer is the company's regional director. arket Edges Ahead In Price and Volume Federal Express, the package airline, has inaugurated service from Atlanta to Seattle and Portland. The Coca-Cola Co. Wednesday reported record second quarter net earnings of $72,945,692, up 16 per cent from $62,921,680 in the previous year. Earnings totaled $1.22 per share, compared to $1.05 per share in the second quarter of 1974.

Sales were $798,290,427, 20 per cent more than last year's $661,199,182. Net earnings for the first six months were or $2 per share, up 15 per cent from $103,536,984, or $1.73 in the previous year. Sales were $1,448,860,711, 25 per cent more than last year's $1,155,769,249. Results for both 1974 periods have been restated to reflect Coca-Cola's adoption last year of the last-in, first-out (LIFO) method of inventory accounting for certain materials. Coca-Cola's board of directors has declared a regular quarterly dividend of 57.5 cents per.

share payable Oct 1 to stockholders of record Sept. 16. J. Paul Austin, the company's chairman, said sales Increases in the first six months "resulted principally from the pass-through of raw materials costs, including sugar, which were substantially higher than a year ago." Unit sales of soft drinks in the United States had shown a decrease in the first quarter, but Austin said that in the second quarter they were "slightly higher" than a year ago. Overseas unit sales that were also ahead of last year's levels in every major market except Japan "contributed substantially to the reported increases in profits," Austin said.

He said domestic prices for syrup were "significantly lower" during the second quarter than the first quarter, a result of lower sugar prices. Austin predicted sugar prices would continue to drop, leading to decreased wholesale and retail prices for soft drinks and increased consumer demand. Coca-Cola expects sales and profit figures at the end of the year will be "substantially ahead" of 1974, Austin said. The strongest gains are predicted in the second half, he added. Yesterday The Market In Brief New Yoik Stock future Wednesdar.

hi VOLUME UP 51S ONE YEAR AGO The Atomic Energy Commission granted Georgia Power Co. a license to operate the first unit at the Edwin I. Hatch Nuclear Plant near Baxley. FIVE YEARS AGO-Building contractors affected by a work stoppage in the Atlanta area filed suit in federal court ask-. ing $25.6 million in damages against the Laborers International Union of North America and its Local 438.

SNARES Jerry FieldsSouth a new execu-tive recruiting firm serving advertising, fllnchangti 4 ISSUES TRADED Superstores DOWN 825 NEW YORK (AP) The Stock market still wary over Inflation prospects, managed only a mixed showing Wednesday despite some periodic waves of bargain hunting. The Dow Jones average of 30 industrials, up more than 5 points at its best level of the afternoon, settled for a 3.52 gain at 813.67. Declines outnumbered gainers 825 to 518 among the 1,789 issues traded on the New York Stock Exchange. Standard Poor's 500-stock index rose .02 to 86.25, and the NYSE's composite index dipped .01 to 46.08. Big 'Board volume Increased to 16.28 million shares from 15.47 million on.

Tuesday. Brokers said it appeared technically-inclined investors were prompted to do some cautious buying when the Dow showed signs of holding firm at around the 810 level They also noted some evident short-covering the repurchase of borrowed shares sold earlier by investors seeking to profit from price declines. A primary object of attention continued to be the July wholesale price index report due Thursday morning from the government Wall Street has been bracing for expected substantial rise in those fig- while, seemed to have been aggravated by the 9 per cent price increase posted by Armco Steel Tuesday on flat-rolled steel, used in making cars and other key consumer products. After Wednesday's close, Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel said it would increase its flat-rolled steel prices to a level "fully competitive" with Armco's. Armco shares eased to 27 and Wheeling-Pittsburgh was unchanged at 20, but most other steel stocks did well.

U.S. Steel, for instance, picked up 1 to 61. Glamor issues paced the market's gainers, with Digital Equipment up 3 at 110 after reporting higher quar-" lerly earnings; Walt Disney Productions ahead 1 at 43; IBM up 1 at 186, and Texas Instruments 3 higher at 98. Brokerage stocks felt weight of recent declines in market prices and trading volume. Merrill Lynch lost to 17; Bache Group to Dean Witter 1 to 10 and Reynolds Securities to 7.

Petrolane, which estimated substantially higher quarterly profits, gained a point to 19. The American Stock Exchange market value index was down .20 at 87.13. In the over-the-counter market, the NASDAQ composite index inched up .07 to 80.24. IH Si Indei 4608 -Q 01 I Comp 86 25 0 02 Dam lones Ind 813.67 3 52 Life of Georgia Off 5 Pet. in Earnings -1 Grocery store shoppers can find almost anything at almost any time By SALLYE SALTER tires for about the last two weeks.

Although the atmosphere remained cautious, some brokers suggested there might also be some feeling of relief that the wholesale price data would at least be made known and thus would no longer be looming ahead of the market. "It's been so well advertised in advance, there's a feeling that it might be anti-climactic when it does appear," commented Larry Wachtel at Bache Co. Inflation concerns, mean Life Insurance Co. of Georgia Wednesday reported second quarter earnings of $3,764,754, down 5 per cent from $3,987,714 in the previous year. On a per share basis, earnings for the period were 63 cents, compared to 66 cents last year.

In the first six months ended June 30, earnings totaled $8,083,306, or $1.36 a share, down 1.8 per cent from last year's $8,229,733, or $1.37 a share. In the six-month period, the company realized capital gains of $23,571, compared to a capital gain in 1974 of $286,883. Net investment income was $18.3 million, up 12.5 per cent from last year's $16.2 million. Premium income gained. 5.8 per cent, from $65.8 million to $69.7 million.

Total income was $88.9 million as compared to $82.9 million a year ago. Payments to policyholders and beneficiaries were $32.5 million, up 16.8 per cent from last year's $27.8 million. Total assets were $721,762,711, gain of 4.8 per cent since the beginning of the year. Vending Firm Says Earnings Up From 1974; Automatic Service an Atlanta-based firm which sells and services vending machines, Wednesday reported net earnings of $309,019 for the third quarter, up from $182,364 in the previous year. Sales in the period were down, however.

They totaled $19,601,419, compared to $22,618,243 a year ago. Net earnings for the first nine months were $727,927, op from $611,854 last year. Sales were $59,952,026, compared to $67,122,429. Earnings figures for 1974 have been adjusted to reflect a change in inventory accounting from the first-in, first-out (FIFO) method to last-in, first-out (LIFO) effective Sept. 30, 1974.

Cotton States Here Says Net for 2nd Quarter Rises 7 Pet. Kroger, with 24 outlets now in the metro area, has' placed all its superstores, plus two other outlets, on a 24-hour basis. Atlanta-based Colonial Stores Inc. is not adding superstores or 24-hour openings to its Atlanta operations, but shares with Kroger's new outlet another supermarket innovation-the automatic banking machine. Last week the Colonial at Lenox Square became the site of the state's first such machine to be located off of bank premises, and Kroger will also offer this convenience feature.

A Colonial spokesman said the 383-store chain has a few around-the-clock operations in resort areas but added, "We have nothing here like that and no, plans for it." Nor does Atlanta's Alterman Foods which operates Big Apple, K-Mart Foods and Food Giant stores, with 83 Atlanta outlets among its total of 99. "We are not interested in the 24-hour opening," said Sam Alterman, executive vice president and general manager. "We don't need it." The size of new Alterman stores is running from 24,000 to 30,000 square feet, he said, but cited the company's expansion as down to a third or a half last year's rate. Chainwide, Colonial's store opening pace is off about 50 per cent from last year's expansion activity, the spokesman said, and its typical new store is between 20,000 and 25,000 square feet. Of the 89 Atlanta stores, about equal to the number a year ago, only three are Colonials with the remainder Big Stars, many converted from Colonials during a process begun in the early 1970s.

Although it is not heading for superstores and 24-hour shopping, Colonial is continuing its ventures into other new fields, such as charging groceries on credit cards. One of the first food retailers to try this, Colonial is expanding this aspect of its business from Atlanta to the Augusta area and into South Carolina later this month, and earlier this year went statewide with credit cards in North Businett WriMr Atlanta's changing supermarket scene fewer store openings and longer shopping hours adds a new dimension next week with the opening of the city's largest "superstore." "We are pegging this the largest food store in the Southeast," said Randy Windschitl, Kroger Atlanta advertising manager, of Kroger's store at 3300 Piedmont Road NE. Located in a growing shopping area near Tower Place, a north Atlanta multi-use complex under construction, the store is the 12th opened by Kroger in the past 18 months. The chain's investment in the "superstores" outlets of 30,000 square feet or more stocked with some 15,000 items), while at the same time closing down the same number of conventional-sized stores, represents a national trend toward bigger grocery stores. Some industry estimates suggest that 50 per cent of all grocery sales will by 1980 be in superstores, which deal in both food and non-food merchandise and bring in sales exceeding $100,000 a week.

This amounts to as much as five times the weekly volume in stores that are a third or half as big and stock half as many items. Atlanta's latest superstore will offer such extras as a peanut butter machine, orange juice squeezer, butcher shop and international foods section. It will also be open 24 hours a day, strengthening the move toward around-the-clock shopping introduced here last winter by which now has 10 stores operated on this basis. The financially troubled ALP food chain began its 24-hour program for higher-volume stores at about the same time it began a store-closing project to encompass about a third of its 3,500 stores. store closings in the metropolitan area this year have numbered about 15 with the chain still operating about 25 outlets here, according to a spokesman in the division office.

No new stores were opened during the past year. Cotton States Life and Health Insurance Co. of Atlanta Wednesday reported second quarter net earnings of (222,477, or 16 cents a share, an increase of 7 per cent over or 15 cents a share, in the same period last year. For the six months ended June 30, net earnings were $484,958, or 35 cents a share, up 7 per cent from $453,797, or 32 cents a share, in the and health plans "are being carefully reviewed before renewal and rate adjustments (are) effected where necessary." The company had of insurance in force as of June 30, an increase of $87,115,729 over the corresponding period in 1974. Assets totaled $26,462,224, as opposed to $23,034,936 last June 30.

Capital and surplus at midyear amounted to $8,471,741, an $828,918 increase over the 1974 figure. The company, which is part of the Cotton States Insurance Group, also reported gains in premium and investment income for the six-month period. Premium income totaled $4,452,306, up 21 per cent from last year's $3,667,909. Net investment income was $780,999, 12 per cent above last year's $699,668. Cotton States President Luke R.

Lassiter attributed the increases to a continuing effort "to refine and streamline" operations. He cited reductions In personnel costs made possible by the company's recent, move into new corporate offices in Perimeter Center West off I-285 in DeKalb County. Lassiter also said group accident ENGRAVED STATIONERY LETTERHEADS, BUSINESS CARDS, ANNOUNCEMENTS J. P. STEVENS ENGRAVING CO.

ESTABLISHED 1874 1 17 rEACHTREE ATLANTA, CA. TELEPHONE 5224170 previous year. Trudeau Skips Dam Dedication; Ford to Attend U.I. AND FOREIGN PurdHiwd Approiud INVESTMENTS, LTD. 262-1810 Appraisal Depf.

A PubMy awwd company I OTTAWA (AP) Prime Alfetta is coming! 0 Do It Yourself Kits or Custom Designed Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau will not attend the dedication of an American hydroelectric dam in Montana that 'will create a lake in southern British Columbia, his office said. "The prime minister was invited, but he has declined," a spokesman said. President Ford will attend the Aug. 24 dedication of the Libby Dam at Libby, one of a series of projects completed under the 1961 Columbia River Treaty. Because Canusa Lake will flood part of British Columbia, Canada, is entitled to half the surplus power generated by the dam.

Northrop Gets a New Chief KEGISTER WETH IfS FOR FREE CREENHOUSE CLINIC ACCM0I and Supplies LOS ANGELES (NYT) -The Northrop Corp. announced Wednesday that directors of the scandal-wracked aerospace company had elected Richard W. Mil- 3483 PeacSifree Road, N.E. (a tit from fUpp Man) lar, 76, as chairman of the board. Thomas V.

Jones, whose involvement in illegal political contributions in this country and bribes to government officials abroad brought a rebuke from the directors last month, will continue as president and chief executive officer, the company said. opn daily 9AM Sundoyl to 5:30 PM 261-0431.