Miller Welborn, chairman of SmartFinancial, speaks during an interview in the offices of Cornerstone Bank onTuesday, Sept. 1, 2015, in Chattanooga, Tenn. SmartBank is among the fastest growing publicly traded companies in America, according to Fortune magazine.
The parent company of SmartBank, SmartFinancial Inc., was rated as the 55th fastest growing company on the Fortune list with an annual growth rate in revenues of 42% and an average annual growth of earnings per share of 37% over the past three years.
SmartFinancial was one of only three Tenneseee-based companies on the list. (Malibu Boats and MasterCraft Boat Holdings were the other two).
The Fortune 100 Fastest-Growing Companies are stock-traded companies ranked each year by revenue growth rate, EPS growth rate and three-year annualized total return.
“This is quite an honor for our company to be recognized alongside some of the most influential businesses in the world,” SmartBank Chairman Miller Welborn said, noting the list includes such high-growth companies as Netflix, Amazon and Facebook.
Nashville among hottest U.S. real estate markets
A new Urban Land Institute study ranks Nashville as the third hottest real estate market in the country, behind only Austin, Texas and Raleigh/Durham North Carolina.
The study compiled by the financial consulting firm pwc of markets in the United States and Canada said Nashville’s building “mood is ebullient with expectations strong for continued investment and development.”
The ULI study of “U.S. markets to watch” also ranked Chattanooga of on the list at No. 50. ULI experts included Chattanooga and Knoxville as cities with “thrifty choices and boutique markets.” Such markets “still offer selective opportunitie for thsoe willing to look for potential.”
The study concluded that “the real estate indsutry will continue to perform, despite recent economic headwinds,” but the authors also cautioned that “the housing affordability crisis is coming to a head,” threatening to limit future home sales.
Food City expands Lafayette grocery
The Food City in LaFayette, Georgia, is marking the completion of an 8,000-square-foot expansion.
The makeover brings the supermarket to over 41,100 square feet and several new jobs, according to the grocer.
“Our customers will find the same smiling faces, top-quality products, exceptional customer service and competitive pricing they have come to expect from Food City, along with some exciting new services and conveniences,” said Steven C. Smith, Food City president and chief executive officer, in a statement.
The expansion includes the addition of a Food City pharmacy, equipped with a drive-through for greater ease in prescription services, as well as a Food City floral boutique staffed with a designer and offering a full assortment of fresh-cut floral arrangements, bouquets, gift items and more, according to the company.
Expansions were also made to the bakery/deli hot foods bar and meat and cheese cases. A pizza bar was added, along with a line of signature salads, Icee machine and milk shake machine. Made to order grill items are also available, along with a fresh salad bar, said Abingdon, Virginia-based Food City.
UAW strike goes on as GM talks continue
A General Motors offer to invest $7 billion in U.S. facilities includes $2 billion from joint ventures and suppliers for new plants that would pay workers less than the top union wage, a person briefed on the matter said.
The offer is a major issue that could get in the way of a deal between the United Auto Workers and the company to end a nationwide strike, now in its fourth day. About 49,000 UAW workers have been on picket lines since Monday in a contract dispute about wages, health care costs, profit sharing, job security and other issues.
The $2 billion investment from entities other than GM is important because those factories would not be run as typical GM plants. Although workers at those facilities would be represented by the UAW, they would be paid far less than the full UAW wage of about $30 per hour, said the person, who requested anonymity because details of contract talks are confidential. The union wants to add jobs that pay the top UAW wage.
On Sunday GM made part of the offer public saying that its investment included 5,400 jobs, the majority of them new hires. But the person briefed on the talks said only about 2,700 new jobs will be added. The rest are jobs that would be retained because of the investments.