Spirit Airlines said Thursday that it is launching new service from Fort Lauderdale to Punta Cana, the Dominican Republic, beginning Dec. 10.
Punta Cana will be Miramar-based Spirit's second destination in the Dominican Republic and 28th destination overall, as the carrier pursues its strategy to be the leading low-fare Caribbean carrier and the airline that offers the most nonstop service to the Caribbean from Fort Lauderdale.
With the addition of Punta Cana, the airline said it will offer 16 nonstop routes to the Bahamas, the Caribbean and Latin America.
Spirit is offering sale fares of $49 each way from Fort Lauderdale to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. The fares, which are subject to various restrictions and do not include various fees and taxes, must be booked on spiritair.com by Nov. 21 for travel Dec. 10 through Feb. 9, 2006.
WQAM-AM's loss of broadcast rights to the Miami Dolphins contributed to slow third-quarter revenue growth for its parent company, Naples-based Beasley Broadcast Group (BBGI), which also owns WPOW-FM 96.5 Power 96, and WKIS-FM 99.9 FM Kiss Country in South Florida.
The company said Thursday that third-quarter revenue ticked up 1 percent, to $32.1 million, over the same period of 2004.
Profits took a hit due to employee stock grants: net income dipped less than 1 percent, to $3.8 million.
Revenue dropped at the South Florida stations, said Chairman George G. Beasley, due to lack of $1.1 million in political advertising and the Dolphins' defection from Sports Radio 560 to rival WAXY-AM 790 The Ticket.
Assurant (AIZ) on Thursday reported a 34 percent jump in third-quarter net income to $100.3 million or 74 cents per share, compared to $74.8 million or 53 cents per share for the same period last year.
The New York-based provider of specialized insurance said it increased profits despite the worst hurricane season on record.
Assurant's Solutions and Specialty Property businesses employ about 1,700 at its Miami campus. Assurant's largest underwriting companies -- American Bankers Insurance Co. of Florida and American Bankers Life Assurance Co. of Florida -- also are headquartered in Miami.
Noven Pharmaceuticals (NOVN), a developer of advanced transdermal drug delivery technologies and prescription transdermal products, on Thursday reported a third-quarter net loss of $1.4 million or 6 cents per share. That compares to $2.6 million in net income or 11 cents per share in the same period of 2004.
The loss includes a previously announced charge associated with the write-off of existing inventories related to Miami-based Noven's developmental fentanyl patch, in the amount of $9.5 million, the company said.
Noven reported net revenues of $12.2 million, up 21 percent compared to $10.1 million in the same period of 2004.
Miami-based Ocean Bank, a subsidiary of Ocean Bankshares, on Thursday reported third-quarter net income of $24 million, up 37 percent from $17.5 million for same period of 2004.
The bank, which has $5 billion in assets, operates 21 branches throughout Miami-Dade and Broward counties.
Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport on Thursday reported a 28.7 percent increase in September traffic, to $1.4 million passengers.
In September, domestic passenger volume rose 24.6 percent to 1.3 million passengers, while international traffic rose 99.4 percent to 117,936 passengers.
Year-to-date, the airport's traffic is up 12.6 percent to 17.3 million passengers. Carriers contributing most to the growth include US Airways, JetBlue Airways, Southwest Airlines and Spirit Airlines.
Miramar-based Applica (APN) on Thursday reported a third-quarter net loss of $8.2 million or 34 cents per share, compared to a net loss of $9.9 million, or 41 cents per share, for the same period of 2004.
Included in the latest results were losses of $4.8 million related to the closing of the Mexican manufacturing facility and a tax expense of $3 million related to an increase in the allowance for deferred tax assets, which was primarily related to the facility's closing.
Third-quarter sales for the small household appliances company were $139.6 million, compared to sales of $182.9 million in the same period in 2004.
Gerald Weber, the former chief operating officer of Blockbuster, AutoNation and NationsRent, has been named president and chief operating officer of chain Lady of America Franchise Corp. The Fort Lauderdale company is the second largest franchisor of women-only fitness centers.
Weber replaces Jeff Silverman, who held the post since January when Lady of America founder Roger Wittenberns retired. At the time, Wittenberns sold a 51-percent stake in the company to Miami investment banking firm Trivest Partners.
The parent company of Broward protective-vest maker Point Blank Body Armor took a $60 million pre-tax charge to replace vests made with the fiber Zylon. Vests containing Zylon were decertified earlier this year by the National Institute of Justice after safety issues were raised.
The charge led DHB Industries (DHB) of Westbury, N.Y., to record a loss of $41.7 million, or 92 cents a share, for the quarter ended Sept. 30., compared with net income of $8.1 million, or 18 cents a share, for the same period last year.
DHB posted revenue of $90.3 million in the latest quarter, up from $89.4 million a year ago. Point Blank has plants in Oakland Park, Pompano Beach and Deerfield Beach.
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