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Monday, Feb 10, 2025

Around the Valleys

CONEJO VALLEY AGOURA HILLS The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation has given the world’s largest humanitarian award to an Atlanta nonprofit. The foundation announced that the Task Force for Global Health would receive the $2 million prize. The organization works in 151 countries through programs on tropical diseases, vaccines, public health informatics and health workforce development. The Hilton Foundation, named for the founder of the Hilton hotel chain, is the largest nonprofit in the Valley region with 2015 assets of $2.4 billion, according to the Business Journal’s 2016 Book of Lists. CAMARILLO Biotech products manufacturer SaniSure Inc. has signed a lease in a Camarillo industrial building for nearly double the space it has in Oxnard and plans to move its operations in October, according to commercial real estate brokerage CBRE Group Inc. The Los Angeles real estate firm said SaniSure has leased 32,000 square feet at 1230 Calle Suerte from property owner 1230 Calle Suerte. The business currently occupies 13,000 square feet in Oxnard, but is headquartered on Flynn Road in Camarillo. The Camarillo market is seeing a slight uptick in interest from biotech companies, CBRE said. THOUSAND OAKS Drugmaker AbbVie Inc. filed a lawsuit against Thousand Oaks biotech Amgen Inc. claiming patent infringement of its top-selling drug Humira, which brought in $14 billion in revenue in 2015. Amgen is developing a biosimilar of the popular arthritis medication, and its version is currently in late-stage development. Chicago-based AbbVie alleges that Amgen’s drug infringes on at least 10 of its patents and said it reserved the right to assert as many as 51 other patents. The suit was filed in a federal court in Delaware. Biosimilars are highly comparable to their original bioengineered counterparts but are not exact replicas, because they are made in living cells. A three-building retail and office park in Thousand Oaks has been refinanced, said Calabasas-based commercial real estate brokerage Marcus & Millichap Inc. The brokerage’s debt and equity arm, Institutional Property Advisors Capital Markets, has arranged $10.3 million in refinancing for Stone Creek Professional Offices, a 106,120-square-foot complex at 195, 275 and 325 E. Hillcrest Drive. The park is owned by 501 Thousand Oaks/Sima Corp. of Santa Barbara, according to CoStar Group Inc. WESTLAKE VILLAGE Interlink Electronics Inc. Chief Executive Steve Bronson rang the closing bell at the Nasdaq in Times Square on Aug. 8. The company began trading on the Nasdaq Capital Market in April under the symbol LINK. The company had previously traded on the over-the-counter market. The Nasdaq Capital Market used to be called the Nasdaq SmallCap Market, one of three market tiers on the Nasdaq. Interlink makes touchpads and computer mouse products for rugged environments such as oil refineries, automobile assembly lines and machine shops. SAN FERNANDO VALLEY BURBANK Walt Disney Co. (DIS) beat Wall Street estimates on adjusted earnings and revenue for the company’s fiscal third quarter. The Burbank entertainment and media giant reported net income of $2.6 billion ($1.59 a share) for the quarter ending July 2, compared with net income of $2.5 million ($1.45) in the same period a year earlier. Revenue increased 9 percent to $14.3 billion. Earnings adjusted to not include charges connected with shutting down international film operations were $1.62. Analysts on average expected earnings of $1.61 on revenue of $14.2 billion, according to the Thomson Financial Network. CHATSWORTH Capstone Turbine Corp. received an order for one of its microturbines for a microgrid project in China. The Chatsworth manufacturer will commission the natural gas-powered C600 Signature Series microturbine in October. Beijing Haohai Power, a Capstone distributor in China, secured the order, the first for the C600 in that country. The microturbine will operate in parallel with wind, solar and energy storage systems onsite to provide maximum environmental benefit and optimal return on investment. Capstone Chief Executive Darren Jamison said the interest in microgrids, which use multiple energy sources to generate and store power, is expanding worldwide. GLENDALE Investors have purchased a medical office building for $11 million, according to commercial real estate brokerage CBRE Group Inc. in Los Angeles. The three-story Verdugo Hills Medical Center at 3600 N. Verdugo Blvd. has nearly 27,000 square feet. It was 87 percent occupied at the time of the sale, and the buyer bought the building as a tax exchange after selling another building. A Glendale-based entity known as George Garikian Living Trust Feb 17, 2013, and La Canada Flintridge private investor Sadayappa Durairaj were the buyers, according to CoStar Group Inc. CBRE’s Gary Stache and Mark Shaffer represented the seller, Dunham & Associates Investment Council. Entertainment industry production equipment rental firm VER has consolidated its operations into three locations in the San Fernando Valley. The company’s main campus is on 11 acres at 800 W. Milford St. in Glendale. The company also has an LED lighting building in Glendale and a new lab for designing, testing, and prepping light systems in Pacoima. Chief Executive Steve Hankin said the business has been growing at a rapid pace and remains committed to staying ahead of its clients’ needs. VER has offices in North America and Europe supplying camera, audio, lighting, computer and other equipment to TV, cinema, live events, broadcast and corporate clients. NORTH HOLLYWOOD A new pedestrian tunnel opened between the Red Line subway and the Orange Line busway in North Hollywood. The $22 million project by Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, or Metro, improves connections for commuters and eases congestion on Lankershim Boulevard by taking them below the street rather than crossing it. Metro has installed ticket vending machines, TAP fare gates, closed-circuit security cameras, Transit Passenger Information System monitors and other amenities in the tunnel. It fully complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Metro Chief Executive Phillip A. Washington said the new tunnel is evidence of how the agency is committed to improving safety and mobility. SANTA CLARITA VALLEY VALENCIA MannKind Corp. (MNKD) announced its second-quarter financial results, reporting an adjusted net loss of $30 million (-7 cents a share) for the second quarter ended June 30, compared with an adjusted net loss of $28.9 million (-7 cents) for the same quarter a year ago. Earnings estimates were -6 cents a share on revenue of $30,000, according to Thomson Financial Network. During the three-month period, manufacturing of its sole commercial product Afrezza — an inhalable insulin — resumed, and the company relaunched the drug on Aug. 1. As part of its relaunch strategy, MannKind plans to offer new programs to enhance education and adoption of Afrezza, including a new copay assistance program. SIMI VALLEY SIMI VALLEY The U.S. Navy has tested and deployed small drones made by AeroVironment Inc. aboard a guided missile destroyer. The company, headquartered in Monrovia but with major operations in Simi Valley, has its RQ-20B Puma unmanned aircraft with a new autonomous recovery system aboard the USS Stout in the Arabian Sea. The recovery system involves the aircraft flying into a portable net. It allows for the aircraft to expand its capabilities supporting maritime operations, said Kirk Flittie, vice president and general manager of AeroVironment’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems business segment. The RQ-20B includes a more powerful and lighter propulsion system, lighter and stronger airframe and a long endurance battery compared with the earlier version of the aircraft. – Compiled by Stephanie Henkel

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