Cantor Fitzgerald initiates Martek coverage with a BUY

Cantor Fitzgerald initiates coverage on Martek Biosciences (Nasdaq: MATK) with a Buy rating. Price target $33.

Cantor analyst says, "We think Martek has entered a dynamic growth phase with a five-year revenue CAGR of 18%, increasing gross margins and EPS up 63% yoy. We expect this financial trend to continue as new packaged food/beverage products fortified with Martek's omega-3 DHA oil launch into a market that increasingly understands/looks for functionally/nutritionally enhanced foods — a business we think is recession-proof. Martek is uniquely positioned in the DHA market, in our view, as the global provider of DHA derived from its proprietary algal technology production process that yields nearly odorless/colorless DHA — a significant advantage for packaged food/beverage companies — and importantly, a fully controlled production process under cGMP, a long-term advantage, we think, as the "Obama effect" impacts food regulation and safety...We expect 25% yoy earnings growth underpinned by increasing revenue with accelerating gross margins as production increases in combination with ongoing biomanufacturing process optimization — a key advantage of biotechnology platform technologies — that we anticipate will translate into solid appreciation of MATK."

Martek Announces First Quarter 2009 Financial Results

Martek recently released their unaudited results from the first quarter of 2009. Despite the economic conditions they made a profit, grew their shareholder equity, and increased their earnings per share. Read their results here.

Annual Chamber Dinner with 50's Theme

Richie, Fonzie and the whole “Happy Days” gang will serve as hosts of the Williamsburg HomeTown Chamber awards banquet on Tuesday, March 3, at the Kingstree recreation facility. The evening will kick off at 6 p.m. when the doors open for ticket holders to enjoy an hour of table viewing and socializing. At 7 p.m. the Kingstree Junior High School Showstoppers will kick off the evening by performing a short 50s repetoire.

Dinner will be catered by Brown’s Barbeque. Interspersed with awards presentations for county-wide superlatives, the Williamsburg HomeTown Chamber Players will celebrate the evening’s theme, “Happy Days in Williamsburg County,“ through the eyes of the characters from the hit series “Happy Days.“ Tickets are $20 each and can be purchased at the Williamsburg HomeTown Chamber office in the railway depot on Main Street in Kingstree.

All businesses and organizations are also invited to sponsor a table by decorating it in keeping with the evening’s 50s theme. Table sponsorships and seating are limited. For more information, call the Williamsburg HomeTown Chamber at 843.355.6431. The public is invited to attend.

Chamber to host breakfast on Card Check

The Williamsburg County Hometown Chamber will host a breakfast on the proposed Card Check Program. The speaker will be Lamar Edwards of Firestone Building Products in Nashville. he will speak on ways business can reject the Card Check agenda. Breakfast will be held at Santee Electric Cooperative at 8 AM on Tuesday, February 10, 2009.

For more information or to RSVP contact Leslee Spivey at 843-355-6431 or whtc@ftc-i.net .

Mitcheom Center: Paisley meets with Citizens about Megadump

David Green of The Weekly Observer has written an insightful article about the January 22, 2009 meeting at the Mitcheom Center between County Supervisor Stanley Pasley and a few citizens about their concerns over the proposed megadump. This is a good question and answer session about the proposed dump site and the costs of not continuing with it.

Russell Marlowe & Carolina Custom Cycles

One of Kingstree's hidden treasures is Russell Marlowe and his custom motorcycle shop. Russell has won many awards and has had his bikes featured in many magazines. The video below shows off his art and craft.

Williamsburg County Residents Protest "Megadumps"

Today people from Williamsburg and Marlboro Counties protested having megadumps in South Carolina on the Statehouse steps. The groups found support from State Senators Leventis (Sumter) and Malloy (Hartsville). Malloy introduced a bill today that would put a moratorium on all new landfills and landfill expansions until 2011.

Governor Sanford has proposed a $3/ton tipping fee on all out-of-state garbage coming into the state's landfills. He wants to bring revenue into the state, while the higher fee should discourage waste from other states.

Read more at SC Now

County Unemployment Rises

Williamsburg County's unemployment for the month of December rose to 14.2% from 12.5% in November. We are currently in a three way tie for 8th highest in unemployment with Dillion and McCormick Counties.

South Carolina unemployment is at 9.5% up from 8.4% in November. Allendale County is the highest in the state with 19.7% unemployment.

Read the South Carolina Employment Commission Workforce Trends Report for more information.

Cramer Thinks Martek Takeover Candidate

CNBC's Jim Cramer believes with the Democrats in control, Big Pharma will have a hard time growing with newer, high priced drugs. Their growth strategy will probably be more in the line of mergers and aquisitions. Abbott Laboratories (ABT) CEO Miles White has hinted in their last conference call that “it’s a good time to be a buyer, as long as there is a willing seller".

Of Cramer's potential four targets is Martek Bioscience (MATK), one of our local manufacturers. Given the current undervalued market, an M&A period like the mid 80's could happen again. Read his opinion at Mad Cap Recap .

Bamboosa expansion to bring 31 new jobs

From the South Carolina Department of Commerce:
COLUMBIA, SC - The South Carolina Department of Commerce, Williamsburg County and Bamboosa announced Friday that the company will expand its operations in Williamsburg County. The $500,000 investment is expected to generate 31 new jobs.
"The company appreciates all of the assistance and help from Williamsburg County and is looking forward to help generate new jobs for the community," said Morris Saintsing, co-owner and manager of sales and operations for Bamboosa.
The expansion of the Andrews facility will allow the company to develop and add new product lines, as well as increase capacity. The company already produces several clothing lines, including a line of baby apparel.
"It's always great to see a South Carolina company grow and Bamboosa's growth in our state is a positive reflection of the innovation and entrepreneurial spirit that exists among the state's workforce and small business owners," said Joe Taylor, Secretary of Commerce. "Thanks to Bamboosa's continued investment in our state, Williamsburg County will benefit with new job opportunities."

Bamboosa's company web site