Finance news. My opinion.

Walt Disney Co. gave a 2011 pay package valued at about $31.4 million to CEO Bob Iger, up 12 percent from a year earlier, according to an Associated Press analysis of data disclosed in a regulatory filing on Friday.

The company said Iger merited the raise, citing Disney’s growth in the face of a challenging economic environment. Burbank-based Disney generated record-breaking profit and revenue for fiscal 2011.

The boost in Iger’s compensation came after Disney’s share price slid 12.5 percent to $29 during the company’s fiscal year, which ended Oct. 3. That was also the same day the stock market reached its low for 2011 after a turbulent summer and early fall that drove the stocks of many companies sharply lower. Disney shares have since recovered and closed Friday at $39.31.

Iger, 60, received a base salary of $2 million, unchanged from the previous fiscal year, according to documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

He also received stock awards valued at $8.1 million at the time they were granted, an increase of 10 percent from a year earlier, and option awards valued at about $4.8 million on the day they were granted, up 9 percent from the year before.

Iger’s performance-based cash bonus grew 15 percent from the prior year to about $15.5 million.

His other compensation jumped 21 percent to $962,932, including $371,439 for personal use of company aircraft and $561,303 for security costs.

Iger’s total compensation in fiscal 2010 was $28 million.

Disney’s net income for fiscal 2011 grew 21 percent to a record $4.8 billion, or $2.52 per share, aided by the success of films such as “The Lion King” in 3-D, and improved revenue from its consumer products, TV and theme park businesses.

Revenue rose 7 percent to a record $40.9 billion.

The Associated Press formula calculates an executive’s total compensation during the last fiscal year by adding salary, bonuses, perks, above-market interest the company pays on deferred compensation and the estimated value of stock and stock options awarded during the year. The AP formula does not count changes in the present value of pension benefits. That makes the AP total slightly different in most cases from the total reported by companies to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The value that a company assigned to an executive’s stock and option awards for 2011 was the present value of what the company expected the awards to be worth to the executive over time. Companies use one of several formulas to calculate that value. However, the number is just an estimate, and what an executive ultimately receives will depend on the performance of the company’s stock in the years after the awards are granted. Most stock compensation programs require an executive to wait a specified amount of time to receive shares or exercise options.

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Shares in Research In Motion are sharply higher amid a new report that the BlackBerry maker is considering selling all or parts of the company.

The report, from The Boy Genius Report blog, which closely follows RIM, says South Korean electronics giant Samsung is the frontrunner among possible bidders for assets of the Waterloo, Ont.,-based maker of smartphones and other products.

The Boy Genius Report also says RIM is currently in talks to license its software to other vendors.

It says one of RIM’s biggest assets is its BlackBerry Messenger instant texting service, which would allow Samsung to differentiate itself from the Android operating system that it uses in its smartphones.

Shares in RIM, which has been the subject of takeover or sale rumours for months, were up 61 cents at $17.47 in afternoon trading after been up more than 75 cents in earlier trading.

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Please remember that a payday loan is a rather expensive line of credit. Much like taking something to the pawn shop.

Stocks barely budged Wednesday, and investors held on to their gains from a strong opening to the year. It wasn’t much, but after the lurching, up-and-down weeks of 2011, investors were grateful for the winning streak.

Strong December sales helped the stocks of automakers and specialty stores. Banks, health care companies, and utilities fell slightly. Netflix surged after its first good news in months.

But nothing else moved much. The Dow Jones industrial average edged up 21.04 points, or 0.2 percent, to close at 12,418.42. The Dow opened the year with a 180-point gain Tuesday, which brought it to the highest level since July.

“At least thus far in 2012 we haven’t followed the path of 2011, where if it’s a good day, there’s a bad day right away,” said Ryan Detrick, senior technical analyst with Schaeffer’s Investment Research.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index and Nasdaq also had big gains Tuesday but only moved a fraction of a point a day later. The S&P inched up 0.24 to close at 1,277.30. The Nasdaq fell 0.36 to 2,648.36.

“It’s healthy to see that after a big rally,” said Randy Warren, chief investment officer for Warren Financial Service. “People need to sit back and think about it.”

Retailing industry stocks rose 0.8 percent as a group after post-Christmas sales came in 5.3 percent better than a year ago. Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. rose 1.8 percent, and Ross Stores Inc., which sells discounted clothes, rose 0.7 percent.

Big-box stores fell, though. Analysts have been concerned that some stores raised holiday sales with deep discounts that will hurt profits. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. fell 1.1 percent, making it the second-biggest decliner among the Dow’s 30 stocks. Target Corp. fell 2.2 percent and Kohl’s Corp. fell 1.4 percent.

Automakers delivered a strong end to 2011, helped carmaker stocks. Analysts had been expecting December to be a strong sales month for cars on the theory that more confidence in the economy would unlock pent-up demand. Ford Motor Co. rose 1.5 percent and General Motors Co. rose 0.5 percent after those two companies and Chrysler reported strong increases in December and full-year sales low fee payday loans.

Visa Inc. fell 1.8 percent and MasterCard Inc. fell 3.3 percent. Janney analysts downgraded both to “neutral” from “buy” and predicted that Americans will keep cutting their personal debt.

The biggest winner in the S&P 500 was Netflix Inc., up 11.4 percent. The company, which delivers movies and TV shows online and by mail, said customers had streamed more than 2 billion hours of video in the fourth quarter.

The yield on 10-year Treasury notes briefly popped above 2 percent, then fell to to 1.98 percent in the afternoon. Yields have been falling over the past year as investors have loaded up on low-risk investments. A rise in yields suggests that investors are more willing to take risks by parking money elsewhere in exchange for higher rewards.

The price of gold rose $12.20 to $1,612.70 per ounce. Oil rose 26 cents to $103.20.

European markets declined, and the euro fell back below $1.30, to $1.2945, within a penny of its lowest level in a year. Another increase in Italy’s borrowing costs renewed worries about Europe’s efforts to restore confidence in its debt-hobbled governments.

In other corporate news:

_ Acme Packet Inc., which makes phone equipment, plunged 19 percent after saying its quarterly profit and revenue would be well below analyst expectations.

_ Yahoo Inc. fell 3.1 percent after the company named Scott Thompson, president of eBay Inc.’s PayPal division, as CEO _ its fourth in five years. Yahoo has been without a permanent CEO since firing Carol Bartz in September. EBay fell 3.8 percent.

_ Fallen photography pioneer Eastman Kodak Co. fell 18 cents to 47 cents after The Wall Street Journal, quoting people familiar with the matter, reported it is preparing a bankruptcy filing in case its efforts to sell some of its patents fail. On Tuesday, Kodak said its stock could be removed from the New York Stock Exchange if it doesn’t rise above $1 in the next six months.

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Federal authorities are investigating a suspected embezzlement of potentially millions of dollars from a St. Louis area medical practice, according to a source close to the investigation.

The FBI and U.S. attorney’s investigation comes on the heels of the termination by Metropolitan Urological Specialists PC of Dunard Morris, who until recently served as its chief executive. The investigation focuses in part on whether money was diverted from the firm’s bank loans, the source said. The amount of missing money isn’t known but could be millions, the source said.

The medical practice also maintains that Morris subleased a $5,475-a-month luxury apartment using company funds without approval of the firm’s board of directors.

During the last two years, the company has shown signs of cash flow problems, including the buildup of about $1 paydayloans.3 million in delinquent federal, state and local taxes, interest and fees, St. Louis County records show.

Asked about the federal investigation, U.S. Attorney Richard Callahan said Thursday, “I don’t want to prejudge anything, but it is a matter that has our interest.”

Morris did not return phone calls Thursday. One of his lawyers, Patrick Smith at DLA Piper law firm in New York, has declined to comment. “I’m not authorized to talk with you,” he said. Morris’ local counsel, Richard Sindel, declined to comment.

Metropolitan’s attorney, Mayer Klein, said the medical firm “terminated” Morris in mid-September but would not detail why. He did confirm that the company is investigating the missing money.

“There were some concerns with regard to prior management, and we’re working with everyone involved

President Barack Obama is using a new report on the income gap between the richest Americans and everyone else to continue pushing for passage of his stalled $447 billion jobs bill.

A report this week by the Congressional Budget Office found that average after-tax income for the top 1 percent of U.S. households had increased by 275 percent over the past three decades while middle-income households saw just a 40 percent increase in their post-tax income. Those at the bottom of the economic scale saw their income grow by a mere 18 percent.

Obama said Saturday in his weekly radio and Internet address that he would pay for his jobs plan with an added tax on people who make at least $1 million a year. But Senate Republicans blocked action on the bill, a blend of tax breaks for businesses and public works spending, because they oppose much of the increased spending and the surtax on millionaires.

“These are the same folks who have seen their incomes go up so much, and I believe this is a contribution they’re willing to make,” he said. “Unfortunately, Republicans in Congress aren’t paying attention. They’re not getting the message.”

Obama is now trying to get Congress to pass the individual components of the bill. But Senate Republicans also blocked action on the first of those measures, $35 billion to help local governments keep teachers on the job and pay the salaries of police officers, firefighters and other emergency services workers.

Saying the country can’t wait for Congress, Obama has begun taking unilateral steps that he says will encourage economic growth. The actions do not require congressional approval.

On Friday, Obama directed government agencies to shorten the time it takes for federal research to turn into commercial products in the marketplace, to help startup companies and small businesses create jobs and expand their operations more quickly. He also called for creation of a centralized online site for companies to easily find information about federal services. He previously had announced help for people who owe more on their mortgages than their homes are worth and for the repayment of student loans. The White House also challenged community health centers to hire veterans.

“We can no longer wait for Congress to do its job,” Obama said. “So where Congress won’t act, I will.”

The CBO report, based on IRS and Census Bureau data, was released as the Occupy Wall Street movement spreading across the country protests bailouts for corporations and the income gap highlighted by the report. The Occupy Wall Street protesters call themselves “the 99 percent.”

In the weekly GOP message, Illinois Rep. Bobby Schilling urged Obama to support the “forgotten 15″ _ measures that Schilling’s party says would help create jobs by blocking various energy and environmental regulations and streamlining administrative procedures. The bills, passed by the Republican-controlled House, await action in the Democratic-run Senate.

Shilling said the bills give the White House and Congress an opportunity to build on the common ground created by the passage of free-trade agreements, and a measure to void a law requiring federal, state and many local governments to withhold 3 percent of their payments to contractors until their taxes are paid. Obama included repealing that tax in his jobs plan.

“Republicans have a jobs plan, one with some bipartisan support, but it’s stuck in the Senate,” said Schilling, owner of a pizza parlor in Moline, Ill. “We’re asking President Obama to work with us and call on the Senate to pass the `forgotten 15′ to help the private sector create jobs, American jobs desperately needed.”

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The most closely kept secret about the iPhone 5? There isn’t one _ yet.

The new iPhone is faster, has a better camera and allows you to sync content without needing a computer. It includes a futuristic, voice-activated service that responds to spoken commands and questions such as “Do I need an umbrella today?” It will now be available to Sprint customers as well as those from AT&T and Verizon Wireless.

But there’s a catch. Apple named it 4S when most people were expecting the iPhone 5. Immediately, tech bloggers and Apple fans alike began to wonder if this new iPhone was not as cool as they had hoped. Investors were disappointed, too. Apple’s stock fell more than 5 percent before getting a late bump.

If Tuesday’s unveiling seemed like a letdown, it was because Apple didn’t do a good job of managing expectations. That’s a familiar problem for Apple, whose penchant for secrecy invites hyperbolic speculation between its product announcements. Given that it had been 16 months since the previous iPhone hit the market, imaginations had even more time to run wild this time.

“This is the typical Apple scenario: People keep wanting it to do the impossible,” said Tim Bajarin, a Creative Strategies analyst who has been following the company for decades.

Apple’s approach to the event didn’t do any favors for Tim Cook in his first major public appearance since he succeeded Steve Jobs as CEO six weeks ago. Jobs, the Apple visionary and co-founder, relinquished the reins to focus on his health problems.

Cook handled his presentation in a pedestrian fashion that lacked Jobs’ flair. The format and stage setting were similar to the presentations that Jobs had orchestrated so masterfully, giving Cook little opportunity to make his own mark, said Adam Hanft, a marketing consultant who runs his own firm in New York.

“It wasn’t fair to Tim in his inaugural because there he didn’t have any product to show off that was a real barnburner,” Hanft said.

“This allowed him to get his sea legs, but he still needs to find his voice and style. They need to come up with a new setting that is equally Apple-like aesthetically, but not the same that they had while Steve was there.”

Even though the iPhone 4S is an improvement over its predecessor, it isn’t being perceived as a breakthrough partly because it’s not being branded as an iPhone 5, as most people had been expecting, said Prashant Malaviya, a marketing professor at Georgetown University.

Not all investors were disappointed.

Stephen Coleman, chief investment officer for Daedalus Capital and an Apple investor since 2004, calls his Apple stock “the safest investment that I own.” He said Tuesday’s upgrades were “incremental” _ and praised Apple for not messing too much with a model that’s working.

“To those who say they’re underwhelmed, I’d say they’ve been fast asleep,” Coleman said. “Anyone who’s been paying attention at all would have to be dazzled by the product, and earnings.”

The stock has risen more than 15 percent this year, at one point hitting an all-time high of $422.86. It has nearly quadrupled since the first iPhone was announced in 2007. The device has been the cornerstone of one of the most remarkable runs in technology history. Apple is now one of the world’s most richly valued companies, holding its own against oil companies and international conglomerates.

“What is there to lament?” Coleman said. “For people like me, it’s peace on earth. This is one of the great economic stories of our time.”

The new iPhone has an improved camera with a higher-resolution sensor. The processor is faster _ the same A5 chip found in the iPad 2 _ so the phone will be able to run smoother, more realistic action games. It’s also a “world phone,” which means that Verizon iPhones will be useable overseas, just as AT&T iPhones already are.

The fact that a more radical revision of the phone was a no-show leaves room for speculation that Apple will reveal a new model in less than a year, perhaps one equipped to take advantage of Verizon’s and AT&T’s new high-speed data networks free credit report and score.

There had also been speculation that Apple would include a chip that could talk to payment terminals at retail stores, turning the iPhone into a mobile wallet. Competitors are starting to include this capability in their phones, though the payment systems are still immature. The iPhone 4S doesn’t have this.

The iPhone 4S will come with new mobile software that includes such features as the ability to sync content wirelessly, without having to plug the device to a Mac or Windows machine. The phone includes Siri, which lets people speak questions and commands and represents an advanced version of speech-recognition software found on other phones.

Apple also unveiled software that can send greeting cards through the postal system for $2.99 each.

Cook said the most recent iPhone, which came out in June 2010, sold more quickly than previous models, but the iPhone still has just 5 percent of the worldwide handset market. Among smartphones, devices running Google Inc.’s Android software make up 43 percent of the market in the second quarter, while the iPhone captures 18 percent, according to Gartner Inc.

Apple is hoping to grow that share with the iPhone 4S _ something it can do by luring new customers from Sprint and elsewhere, even if existing owners don’t see a need to upgrade.

Bajarin, the longtime Apple watcher, is confident that Apple will quickly overcome the perception problem once technology reviewers get a better handle on all the new bells and whistles. He believes that the improved camera and speech-recognition technology are compelling enough additions to make the iPhone 4S another hit for Apple.

“People are going to get over their initial disappointment and want this phone,” he said.

Apple’s new mobile software, iOS 5, will also be available on Oct. 12 for existing devices _ the iPhone 4 and 3GS, both iPad models and later versions of the iPod Touch.

Apple said Oct. 12 will also mark the launch of its new iCloud service, which will store content such as music, documents and photos on Apple’s servers and let people access them wirelessly on numerous devices. One component is a $25-per-year service, called iTunes Match, that will allow people to play their personal jukeboxes on any device with iTunes software instead of keeping them tethered to a personal computer that must be synced with other devices.

The new phone will come in black or white. It will cost $199 for a 16 gigabyte-version, $299 for 32 GB and $399 for 64 GB _ all with a two-year service contract requirement. Pre-orders will begin Friday with availability on Oct. 14.

The previous version, iPhone 4, will now cost $99 for 8 GB. The 2009 model, the iPhone 3GS, will be given away for free with 8 GB. Both also require a two-year service contract.

Don’t expect to see an iPhone available with prepaid, contract-free service plans any time soon _ at least not with AT&T. Ralph de la Vega, AT&T’s head of wireless and consumer services, said in an interview that the carrier has no plans to offer iPhones with prepaid plans, because even phones that are free with two-year contracts _ namely the iPhone 3GS _ would cost customers a significant amount up front. Wireless companies typically subsidize the cost of phones and make that back from monthly service fees over the life of the contract.

Apple also unveiled a new line of iPods, including a Nano model with a multi-touch display that promises to be easier to navigate.

Apple’s stock fell $2.10, or 0.6 percent, to close Tuesday at $372.50 after dropping earlier to $354.24.

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Top financial officials from eurozone countries were grappling with Greece’s worsening debt crisis on Monday after Athens’ admission that its deficit will be higher than promised sent markets tumbling.

Greece’s revelation calls into question whether Athens will receive the next installment of the bailout loan it needs to pay its day-to-day bills. If it doesn’t receive euro8 billion ($10.8 billion) by mid-October, it could go bankrupt and would be unable to pay pensions and salaries.

European Monetary Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn wouldn’t be drawn out Monday on what Greece’s creditors will do with the new information, saying only that they were still reviewing the data.

“We are currently assessing whether Greece will meet its fiscal targets with the current measures,” Rehn said ahead of Monday’s meeting. “I want to do our job first properly; it seems that Greece is likely to miss the target.”

Although the ministers have already said they won’t decide on the next payment at their meeting Monday in Luxembourg, the issue is sure to be high on the agenda.

Markets have been exceptionally volatile in recent weeks, as they look for any hint that European leaders have a credible way to steer Greece back to health and prevent its debt problems from spreading to other, larger eurozone economies. The Greek announcement confirmed investors’ fears that even the country’s dramatic spending cuts will not be enough.

Greece’s finance ministry said Sunday that the country will run a deficit of 8.5 percent of economic output, or euro18.69 billion ($25.2 billion), this year _ far above the promised euro17.1 billion ($23.1 billion), which would have been 7.8 percent of GDP.

Part of the problem is that since Greece’s economy is shrinking, the government is taking in less and less money. That in turn means it has to cut even more to reduce the size of its deficit and make a dent in its debts.

In 2012, Athens’ debts are projected to reach 172.7 percent of gross domestic product, while the deficit will drop to 6.8 percent.

The announcement will also force the eurozone to decide whether they will go ahead with a second euro109 billion rescue package tentatively agreed in July. Germany, among others, has been pushing to reopen that deal.

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Hurricane Ophelia has intensified to a Category 4 storm as it passes east of Bermuda and heads north toward Newfoundland, where the entire Avalon Peninsula is under a tropical storm watch.

The National Hurricane Center in Miami said Saturday evening that Ophelia had maximum sustained winds near 135 mph (217 kph), up from 120 mph (193 kph) late Saturday afternoon.

It was moving north at 26 mph (42 kph) and was 140 miles (225 kilometers) east of Bermuda. It was expected to weaken rapidly late Sunday, though tropical-storm-force winds are possible on the Avalon Peninsula early Monday payday loans.

Ophelia is the season’s fourth hurricane. Earlier, Ophelia caused flooding and cut off communities on Dominica.

Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Philippe was stronger but it remained far from land in the Atlantic.

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Back when the recession first took hold, we never expected to count this high: 61,000 net jobs lost in Metro St. Louis since employment peaked in February 2008.

The stories of the displaced come in an infinite variety, though increasingly with one disturbing commonality: the unprecedented length of their joblessness. The average jobless stint now lasts 10 months, long enough to cripple not only short-term finances but long-term career prospects. 

In the Sunday Business section of the Post-Dispatch, and here on stltoday.com, we’ll explore these trends, and the impact on our neighbors, in a special report: Jobless in St. Louis. 

George Batten, 50, has been out of work for three years - after spending three decades climbing to an executive post. Construction worker Scott Regna, 31, has seen his income drop from $50,000 in 2006 to a mere $3,000 last year. J.L. Hickman, 62, had worked literally hundreds of full-time and contract jobs before hitting a wall 15 months ago; he’s put in 552 unsuccessful applications since then. The career of 24-year-old Isabel Yerkes has yet to start, as she labors in a part-time retail purgatory after graduating college. Alfreda Lewis, 55, prays each day as she nears the two-year mark without a job and nears the end of her unemployment insurance.

These are just a handful of stories plucked from the tens of thousands being lived, and endured, every day by our family, neighbors and friends in the St. Louis region. Taken together, they amount to a staggering financial and emotional toll that, however and whenever we recapture solid economic ground, will be with us for years to come.

In Sunday Business: 

Most Japanese automakers reported lackluster vehicle production and sales for July, underscoring ongoing malaise in the industry as it grapples with a strong yen, precarious global economy and recovery from the March 11 tsunami.

Worldwide production at Toyota Motor Corp. fell 6.1 percent from a year earlier to 594,614 vehicles, the company said Tuesday. Its domestic sales of passenger cars, trucks and buses tumbled more than 35 percent, and exports fell 5 percent due to weaker shipments to North America.

Toyota, however, said its production returned to levels that were near to what it had planned before the March earthquake and tsunami struck Japan’s northeastern coast, wiping out auto parts suppliers.

The automaker is preparing to ramp up production in the coming months to make up for the capacity lost to the disaster. Between October and March 2012, the automaker plans to build an extra 350,000 vehicles.

The numbers were worse at Honda Motor Co., where global production tumbled more than 34 percent to 206,727 vehicles in July. It was the sixth straight month of decline on line pay day loans.

Honda’s domestic sales of vehicles fell 31.5 percent and exports retreated more than 19 percent.

Standing above the crowd was Nissan Motor Co., which continued to gain momentum and set company records in July.

The Yokohama-based automaker recorded an almost 18 percent jump in worldwide output to 388,680 vehicles _ its best-ever July performance. Production in the U.S. benefited from stronger demand for the Altima sedan, Nissan said.

Although Nissan’s Japan sales fell 17 percent in volume terms, global sales overall rose 8 percent. Exports surged more than 23 percent.

Among Japan’s other car makers, Suzuki Motor Corp. posted a 3.6 percent decline in global production to 228,147 vehicles.

Worldwide output at Mazda Motor Corp. fell almost 13 percent to 103,384 vehicles. At Mitsubishi Motors Corp., it declined about 5 percent to 97,862 vehicles.

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