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The California High-Speed Rail Authority will seek up to $1 billion in a new application for federal funding for the state’s high-speed train project.

For this round of funding, the U.S. Department of Transportation has made $2.3 billion in additional funds available for high-speed and intercity rail projects nationwide. The funds would help complete engineering and other work on the project not covered by previous federal stimulus grants.

Last January, California’s high-speed train project won $2.25 billion, the largest share of federal funding set aside for such projects under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

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New BP CEO Bob Dudley is an alumnus of the Thunderbird School of Global Management. He serves on the Glendale graduate business school’s board of fellows and on BP's board of directors.

Dudley is taking over for embattled CEO Tony Hayward, who is stepping down. Hayward and BP have been faulted for their response to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill and for their sometimes aristocratic statements and attitudes toward the spill payday loan.

Dudley received a Master of International Management degree from Thunderbird in 1979 and is a veteran oil industry executive.

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The drug-data provider Epocrates Inc. has filed with the SEC to sell up to an estimated $75 million in an initial public offering.

The company plans to trade on the Nasdaq Global Market with the symbol EPOC.

Epocrates, a leading provider of mobile drug reference tools and interactive services, said it will use the proceeds to pay dividends due to the holders of its Class B preferred stock and for general corporate purposes, including working capital, research and development, sales and marketing, and capital expenditures.

J.P. Morgan Securities Inc. and Piper Jaffray & Co. will serve as joint book-running managers no fax pay day loan. William Blair & Co. LLC. and JMP Securities LLC will act as co-managers.

The company has yet to determine the number of shares to be sold and their price range.

Epocrates has more than 1 million users, including more than 40 percent of U.S. physicians, the company said. Its products are used on popular hand-held devices including the iPhone, iTouch and Blackberry, and Palm, Android and Windows devices.

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Lending through Small Business Administration programs has plummeted since the end of May, when the SBA ran out of money for breaks that made those loans less risky for lenders and more affordable for borrowers.

The drop in SBA lending has occurred even as Congress explores new ways to expand small businesses’ access to credit.

The economic-stimulus bill increased the government guarantee on the SBA’s flagship 7(a) loans to 90 percent from the typical 75 percent. The legislation also reduced or waived fees on those loans as well as 504 loans, which are used primarily for real estate. As a result of those breaks, SBA lending rebounded after cratering during the credit crisis of late 2008.

Through June 25, the SBA had approved $10.5 billion in 7(a) loans this fiscal year, which began Oct. 1. That’s up 80 percent from the same period a year ago.

However, lending slowed dramatically in June due to the loss of the higher guarantee and fee waivers. In May, SBA lenders made about $272 million in 7(a) loans per week. That’s not counting the $732 million in 7(a) loans made during the final week of May, as lenders rushed to get their loans approved before the loan breaks expired. In the first four weeks of June, average weekly loan volume dropped to $86 million.

President Barack Obama has called for reviving and extending the higher loan guarantee and fee waivers through the end of the year, and the proposal has bipartisan support. But Congress left town for its weeklong Fourth of July break without acting on it. That lack of urgency frustrates SBA lenders.

Tony Wilkinson, president and chief executive of the National Association of Government Guaranteed Lenders, criticizes Congress for letting “the one stimulus program that was probably working the best” expire.

“Shame on them,” says Eddie Tuvin, vice president of SBA and commercial lending at Capital Bank in Rockville, Md. “Why isn’t it a priority?”

Restoring the 90 percent guarantee “would do as much to really juice the recovery as anything,” says Charles Green, a former SBA lender in Atlanta who now advises businesses on financial issues.

Tuvin says 7(a) loans “breezed through” his bank’s approval process when the 90 percent guarantee was in place. “It was a major factor in the decision of our loan committee to approve several loans that wouldn’t have been made without it low rates payday advance.”

Now it’s much a harder to get a 7(a) loan approved, he says.

Plus, many borrowers and lenders simply are holding off on SBA loans.

“We have borrowers waiting right now who are willing to create and retain jobs,” Wilkinson says.

The Senate is expected to vote soon on legislation that would restore those SBA loan breaks, as well as establish a $30 billion fund that community banks could tap for small-business lending. Chances for the Small Business Jobs Act are good; it cleared a procedural hurdle by a 66-33 vote before the Fourth of July recess.

But that doesn’t mean the SBA loan breaks will be restored right away. The Senate bill differs in many respects from the House’s version of the Small Business Jobs Act. That means the Senate and House would have to hash out their differences before sending the legislation to the president for his signature. That could take weeks, or even months.

Even though the Senate bill increases the size limits on SBA loans — something lenders have long pushed for — Wilkinson would rather see Congress first pass a simple extension of the higher guarantee and fee waivers, and then work out a more ambitious bill.

Financial regulatory reform also awaits a final vote in the Senate when Congress returns. The legislation aims to end “too big to fail” bank bailouts by imposing new capital and leverage requirements, and creating an orderly system to liquidate large financial firms that fail. It also regulates over-the-counter derivatives and creates a new consumer watchdog for financial products.

Critics fear the bill could hurt the availability of credit to small businesses. Tuvin expects banks may cut back their lending as a result of the additional costs and regulations they would face as a result of the legislation. Green fears the bill could lead to more bank consolidation, because it would make it harder for smaller banks to be profitable.

However, Green thinks small businesses could benefit from the bill’s new consumer protections, since many business owners rely on credit cards and revolving lines of credit.

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Los Alamos National Laboratory and its employees donated a combined $113,000 to the United Way of Santa Fe’s 2009-2010 giving campaign, making LANL the top donor for the ninth consecutive year.

LANL and its management company, Los Alamos National Security LLC (LANS), will receive the 2010 Top Workplace Contributor Award, along with the lab’s Community Programs Office. In addition, Debbi Wersonick – who coordinates community-giving programs for LANL – will receive a Community Ambassador plaque cashadvance.

LANL employees raised more than $2 million in its most recent giving campaign for the United Way of Santa Fe County and United Way of Northern New Mexico. The total included a dollar-for-dollar match from LANS.

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California’s high-speed rail officials said Monday they will compete for a share of an additional $2.3 billion in federal funds for such train projects nationwide.

Federal Railroad Administration officials announced they will start accepting applicants to disseminate $2.1 billion in grants for high-speed intercity passenger rail projects. The agency will also make available $245 million for individual construction projects within a high-speed rail corridor.

This will be in addition to the $8 billion in federal stimulus funds that were awarded to high-speed rail projects last fall. California was able to secure $2.2 billion of that amount to help kick-start its proposed 800-mile, $45 billion statewide high-speed rail network connecting Southern California with the Bay Area and Sacramento payday loans.

“The High-Speed Rail Authority and California will compete aggressively for our share of these funds to supplement the federal stimulus funds we have already been awarded and the state funds committed to the project by the people of California," said Curt Pringle, chairman of the rail authority’s board of directors, in a statement. "We will continue to move forward with building the nation’s first high-speed rail system because we know it will create jobs, economic opportunity for Californians and improved mobility for our state.”

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Congressman Zach Wamp, R-Chattanooga, has scored the second business celebrity endorsement this week in Tennessee’s gubernatorial race, winning the support of Nashville-based financial guru Dave Ramsey.

Wamp is in a three-way race with Knoxville Mayor Bill Haslam and Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey of Blountville for the Republican nomination to face Democrat Mike McWherter in the governor’s race. Party primaries are Aug. 5. Dave Ramsey will host a fundraising event for Wamp at his Franklin home on July 1.

“We the people are looking for freedom from government control over our personal lives and our wallets,” Ramsey said in a statement. “Taxes are out of control because government spending is out of control.”

Ramsey’s Brentwood-based The Lampo Group employs 285 people and provides financial planning resources and classes based on Ramsey’s debt-free principles.

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KV Pharmaceutical Company sold its Particle Dynamics subsidiary to an Ohio investment fund, but the divested company plans to remain in the St. Louis area.

As part of the asset sale, Bridgeton-based KV received $24.6 million, company officials announced Thursday. That money was needed to provide sufficient liquidity to keep KV afloat until its production resumes.

For the past 18 months, the ailing pharmaceutical firm’s production plants have been closed in large part because of an ongoing criminal investigation by the Food and Drug Administration.

This year, another KV subsidiary — Ethex Corp. — pleaded guilty to federal charges of failing to inform the FDA that it was manufacturing oversized tablets that could be harmful to patients.

Particle Dynamics was purchased by a private equity group led by Edgewater Capital Partners of Woodmere, Ohio. Edgewater’s investments include other specialty chemical companies and auto parts makers.

The deal was engineered by Paul Brady, who served as KV’s vice president of corporate development as well president of Particle Dynamics Inc.

"I felt there was a great opportunity here to not only keep the business in St. Louis, but also grow the business," said Brady, who moves on as an investor and chief executive of the divested firm, now called Particle Dynamics International LLC.

Particle Dynamics, which processes raw materials that are used in the pharmaceutical industry and other markets, managed to retain its FDA certification and remain profitable.

Its facility on Hanley Road in Brentwood was rebuilt after it burned down a year ago. It has about 30 employees.

Specifically, the company makes "micro-encapsulated particles" consisting of drug active ingredients and vitamins that are sold to branded pharmaceutical companies and companies that make over-the-counter medicines.

One of Particle Dynamics’ leading products is a granulated calcium for osteoporosis treatments.

"I believe that the outlook is very strong," Brady said. "Suppliers like PDI are becoming even more important because of our exemplary record of good manufacturing."

Meanwhile, the asset sale helps breathes life into KV, which hopes to obtain FDA approval to restart its production later this year.

"We’ve been talking about the sale of PDI for some time," KV spokeswoman Brooke Eiler said. "It means that we have an additional $24.6 million to ease our liquidity situation going forward."

Under the terms of the sale, KV could also receive up to $5.5 million in additional "earn out payments" if Particle Dynamics meets certain income levels.

Eiler said the pharmaceutical company’s cash burn for the first quarter of this year ran about $35 million, but that recent layoffs should help ease its cash-flow problems. The company employed 1,700 workers as recently as 2008; now that total is less than 400.

The sale of Particle Dynamics "provides a little bit of operating room, but it’s not the solution," Eiler said. "We need to get back into business. … Obviously, there are ongoing efforts to find cash."

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Stocks recovered from deep losses posted earlier in the session but ended lower Wednesday, as investors welcomed the Fed’s forecast of an improving economy amid lingering fears about the global economy.

The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) finished 67 points lower, or 0.6%. Earlier, the index dropped 150 points. Industrial stocks led the decline, with shares of Caterpillar (CAT, Fortune 500) and Boeing (BA, Fortune 500) falling more than 2%.

The S&P 500 (SPX) lost 6 points, or 0.5%. The broad index also slid as much as 20 points to hit an intraday low of 1100.66. Investors will keep a close eye on 1,100, a key psychological level. If the index breaks below that level, it could trigger further selling or may wind up bringing money back into the market.

The Nasdaq composite (COMP) slipped 19 points, or 0.8%. Earlier in the session, the tech heavy index fell more than 1%.

Stocks had tumbled Tuesday as investors shrugged off better-than-expected earnings from U.S. retailers and remained focused on European debt problems after the euro hit a four-year low against the dollar.

The euro zone’s fiscal troubles remained in the spotlight for most of Wednesday following Germany’s announcement that it will ban ‘naked’ short selling. But the Fed’s minutes released later in afternoon lifted the central bank’s outlook for the economy, and in turn boosted investor confidence and prompted U.S. stocks to regain some ground.

The earlier pullback also allowed investors who were waiting on the sidelines to get back in the game, said Dave Hinnenkamp, chief executive of KDV Wealth Management.

While fear and uncertainty will continue to drag on markets in the near future, analysts expect a steady turnaround to take hold in the second half of the year as investors shift more attention to the strength in the U.S. economy.

"Even with Europe’s problems impacting the worldwide recovery, the economic strength we’ve seen here has been overshadowed," Hinnenkamp said. "We’ve been getting a bevy of good news in corporate earnings reports and forecasts."

Earlier in the day, declines in the market were exacerbated by Germany’s announcement curbing trading practices.

"There’s no question that Europe’s austerity measures will impact global economic activity, but the German ban raises even more questions," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Avalon Partners.

Cardillo said Germany’s inclusion of financial firms in the restrictions has investors on edge that serious problems are developing within those institutions.

The CBOE Volatility index, or the VIX (VIX), the market’s fear gauge, spiked 15.5% to its highest point since May 7, the day after the market’s flash crash. It later recovered to just 3.7% higher.

German trading ban: Late Tuesday, Germany’s financial regulator issued a ban on naked short sales of euro zone debt and the the country’s 10 leading financial firms.

Traditional short sellers borrow a security and buy it back later a lower price, hoping to pocket the difference.

In a "naked" short sale, however, investors sell the investment without ever borrowing the shares or bonds, making it much easier to drive down their value.

Regulator BaFin said the ban will apply until March 31, 2011.

World markets: European shares also took a hit, with Germany’s DAX and France’s CAC finishing 2.9% lower. The FTSE 100 in Britain slipped 2.8%,

The German trading ban also sparked jitters in Asia, where Hong Kong’s Hang Seng sank 1.8% and Japan’s Nikkei finished the session 0.5% lower.

Economy: The Labor Department said its consumer price index slipped 0.1% in April on a monthly basis, but climbed 2.2% compared to a year earlier. Still, that’s the smallest annual increase since January 1966.

The government’s report showed that core CPI, which excludes volatile food and fuel prices, held steady with March’s figures and rose 0.9% on an annual basis.

Economists had expected the CPI and core CPI to edge up 0.1%, according to a consensus forecast from Briefing.com.

A report from the Mortgage Banker Association showed that a record 10.06% of borrowers were behind on the payments during the first quarter of 2010.

Investors also took in minutes from the Federal Reserve’s latest policy meeting. The central bank improved its outlook for economic growth this year and decreased its forecast for the unemployment rate.

Wall Street reform: Senators in favor of the financial reform bill failed to muster enough votes to end debate on the legislation in a crucial test vote on Wednesday afternoon.

Proponents were shy 3 of the 60 votes needed to pass the test, which intended to set up the bill for a final vote by the end of the week.

Companies: Target (TGT, Fortune 500) reported Wednesday that its quarterly profit rose 28% to $671 million from a year ago. The retailer’s earnings per share of 90 cents missed analysts’ expectations of 91 cents per share. Target’s stock ended 0.4% lower.

Dollar and commodities: The dollar fell 1.6% against the euro after the shared currency eased off a four-year low hit Tuesday. But while the euro is clawing back up, Cardillo said it is only enjoying a relief rally and further declines are expected.

The greenback also turned lower against the British pound, sliding 0.6%, and the buck declined 0.7% versus the Japanese yen.

U.S. light crude oil sank to a 7-month low below $68 a barrel earlier Wednesday, before regaining losses to settle 46 cents higher at $68.87.

Gold for June delivery fell $21.50 to settle at $1,193.10 per ounce.

Bonds: Treasury prices ended lower. The 10-year note’s yield rose to 3.37%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.

Market breadth was negative. On the New York Stock Exchange, losers beat winners by almost four to one on volume of 1.6 billion shares. On the Nasdaq, decliners beat advancers three to one on volume of 2.6 billion shares. 

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Hospital giant HCA Inc. — co-parent of HealthONE, the largest health care system in metro Denver — on Sunday filed its much-anticipated initial public offering, reported first-quarter earnings of $388 million and announced a $500 million distribution to stockholders.

Nashville-based HCA, which operates 162 hospitals and 106 freestanding surgery centers across the country and in England, expects to raise $4 billion with an IPO, though underwriters could bump that figure up to $4.6 billion.

About $2.5 billion will come in the form of newly issued shares, with the rest coming from current shareholders who will sell on the public market.

HCA spokesman Ed Fishbough declined to comment.

In Colorado, HCA co-owns Denver-based HealthONE with the nonprofit Colorado Health Foundation.

HealthONE hospitals include the Medical Center of Aurora, North Suburban Medical Center, Presbyterian/St. Luke’s Medical Center, Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children, Rose Medical Center, Swedish Medical Center and Sky Ridge Medical Center.

Analysts and other industry-watchers have been expecting HCA to make a return to the public market for some time, especially since the passage of health care reform legislation in March.

Sheryl Skolnick of CRT Capital Group said all eyes will be on HCA as a “bellwether” of the equity markets’ appetite for health care investment. How the market receives HCA could prompt others to follow suit, she said.

“There are quite a few other companies that are going to be watching this very closely,” Skolnick said.

The HCA IPO is the largest private-equity backed offering since the financial crisis began three years ago, according to Thomson Reuters data low fee pay day loans. It’s the third largest deal announced so far this year worldwide, and the largest in the U.S. — three times larger than the next biggest U.S. deal, according to Bloomberg.

Last month, Tampa, Fla. -based investment firm Validus Group announced it would go public in a $1.5 million offering.

HCA is stepping out on solid footing. In the first quarter, the company’s revenue rose 1.5 percent to $7.54 billion while net income climbed 7.8 percent. As of March 31, HCA had about $25.9 billion of debt, or about 4.9 times its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.

“As a public company, we expect to have improved access to capital markets that we will be able to use to both reduce outstanding debt and reinvest into the growth of the company,” CEO Richard Bracken said in a conference call with investors.

This will mark the third time that HCA has gone public since its founding in the mid-1960s. The company has been private since 2006 when a private investor group that included affiliates of Bain Capital, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. and Merrill Lynch Global Private Equity joined HCA founder Thomas Frist Jr. in a $33 billion leveraged buyout.

With the filing, HCA now enters a quiet period until the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commision reviews its registration statement, a process that could take up to three months. Once the SEC signs off, HCA executives will go on the road making presentations to potential institutional investors and a stock price will be assigned.

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