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Thu. Aug. 02, 2012 Massachusetts-based Hologic plans to close Wisconsin plant, eliminating 130 jobs A Massachusetts company that makes medical devices says it plans to close a Wisconsin manufacturing plant in the next few years, eliminating 130 jobs. Hologic Inc. of Bedford, Mass., has informed the state of Wisconsin that it will close its Madison plant. Layoffs are expected to begin at the end of next month and continue through September 2014. The letter to Wisconsin officials was dated Wednesday, the same day the company announced it completed its $3.8 billion acquisition of diagnostic test maker Gen-Probe Inc.	Advertisement
LevelUp raises an additional $9m LevelUp, a mobile payment app created by Boston start-up Scvngr, announced Thursday that it has raised an additional $9 million in venture capital from T-Venture, Deutsche Telecom’s venture capital arm, as well as from other individual investors. The additional $9 million brings the total that LevelUp has raised in its Series D round to just over $21 million. Since 2008, Scvngr and LevelUp have raised $41 million in venture funding.
Aspect Software appoints Stewart Bloom as its new CEO Aspect Software, a Chelmsford company that provides technology and software for call centers, announced the appointment of Stewart Bloom as chief executive, effective immediately. Bloom is succeeding Jim Foy, who held the post for 10 years. Foy will remain in the full-time role of executive chairman of Aspect’s board of directors, the company said. He led the company to an alliance with Microsoft and oversaw several acquisitions.
TJX reports 7% jump in July same-store sales TJX Cos., the Framingham company that operates such retail chains as T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, and HomeGoods, said its same-store sales rose 7 percent in July when compared with the same month a year ago, an increase that “significantly” exceeded company expectations. Same-stores sales are sales at stores open at least a year. Wall Street analysts consider same-store sales to be a key measure of a retailer’s performance. TJX added Thursday that it is further raising second-quarter and full-year guidance for its expectations of earnings per share.
AMSC 1Q loss narrows AMSC, a Devens company that makes products for wind turbines and energy grids, reported a first-quarter net loss of $10.3 million, compared with a $37.7 million loss for the same quarter a year ago. First-quarter revenue was $28.7 million, up from $9.1 million a year ago. For the quarter ending Sept. 30, AMSC said it expects that its revenues will exceed $20 million. AMSC expects that its net loss for the second quarter will be less than $22 million.
Haemonetics completes $550m acquisition Haemonetics Corp., a blood management company based in Braintree, said it has completed the $550 million acquisition of the business assets of the blood collection, filtration, and processing product lines of Pall Corp. The sales agreement was announced earlier this year. The combined company is expected to generate greater than $1 billion of revenue in its full fiscal year 2014
Fidelity Investments fund managers sold 1.7 million shares of Facebook in June Fidelity Contrafund manager Will Danoff was still a believer in Facebook Inc. in June, even after its rocky IPO. His colleague Ramin Arani, not so much. Nineteen Fidelity Investments fund managers sold 1.7 million Facebook shares in June, while 16 funds added 2.8 million more shares to their holdings, according to Morningstar Inc. Fidelity was an early holder of the social networking company’s shares, which went public on May 18. Facebook shares have fallen from their $38 IPO price to $20.88 on Wednesday.
Youth Jobs Coalition protest in Copley Square calling for more teen hiring Members of the Youth Jobs Coalition gathered in Copley Square Wednesday afternoon to protest what they call a lack of teen hiring by Bain Capital, LLC, accounting firm Ernst & Young, and other Boston companies. While the city’s youth employment program reached its goal of 10,000 jobs this summer, members of the coalition say that more needs to be done. The city’s statistics show that among the 590 Boston companies with 100 employees or more, 80 percent do not hire youth for summer jobs.
Convention center authority to buy site for hotel The Massachusetts Convention Center Authority is finalizing a deal to take by eminent domain land in Boston’s Seaport District where it wants to build hundreds of hotel rooms, the first step toward a massive expansion of the sprawling convention complex, according to a person with knowledge of the transaction.
Say good-bye to the Boston Phoenix and hello to The Phoenix, a new weekly magazine The Phoenix Media/Communications Group, a Boston-based independently owned news company, said it will replace its STUFF magazine and its Boston Phoenix alternative weekly with “The Phoenix,” a glossy weekly magazine that plans to combine the content of both its predecessors. With free distribution throughout Greater Boston, the new magazine aims to provide readers with “a richer experience,” and it is set to reach the market in the early fall, said the company, which added that the new format aims to better meet the needs and desires of readers and advertisers.
Langham, Boston’s $6m renovations include a ‘European-style champagne lounge’ The Langham, Boston, said Wednesday that it is in the final stages of a$6 million-plus renovation to the Franklin Street hotel’s 6,000 square foot lobby. Planned renovations include a new entrance, a new reception area, and a new “dining enclave” to complement the existing architecture. The Langham is housed in Boston’s former Federal Reserve Bank building.
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