Robert “Steve” S. Miller remains AIG’s nonexecutive chairman, but the insurer’s board of directors “will be assessing its [succession] plans in light of Mr. Miller’s announcement” of his new job, an AIG spokesman said.

AIG’s board outlined a management succession plan in late 2010 that would see Miller step in as interim CEO if Benmosche had to stop working. Benmosche was diagnosed with cancer in October of that year, leading the board to quickly map out the plan.

Since then, Benmosche has responded well to treatment and recently said he expects to remain CEO beyond 2012 if his health allows.

Benmosche has also said the board has identified several internal candidates who may be able to fill his shoes when the time comes.

Hawker Beechcraft named Miller as its new CEO Tuesday morning. Outgoing CEO Bill Boisture will remain chairman of the company’s operating subsidiary, Hawker Beechcraft Corp.

Miller has had a long career that has spanned the automotive, steel and waste-management industries. He has run several troubled major companies, including Delphi Corp., his last CEO job. He ran the auto-parts maker between July 2005 and September 2007, when he turned over the corner office to Rodney O’Neal. He remained executive chairman until the fall of 2009, when the company emerged from a protracted bankruptcy.

Miller is a director of Symantec Corp. SYMC +0.51% , a maker of security software, and has previously served on the board of directors of more than a dozen companies.

Miller earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Stanford University and his law degree from Harvard Law School.

–Serena Ng and Joann S. Lublin contributed to this article.

SOURCE: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/aig-reviews-benmosche-replacement-plan-2012-02-07

Durcan had been Micron’s president and chief operating officer. On Saturday he was also appointed to the company’s board of directors.

Micron’s board also announced Robert E. Switz would succeed Appleton as chairman of the board, and that Mark W. Adams had been appointed president. Switz has served as a director since 2006 and is the former chairman and CEO of ADC Telecommunications. He has previously served as chair of the Micron Board’s Audit and Governance committees. Adams joined the company in 2006 and served most recently as vice president of worldwide sales.

The announcements come as the company remains shaken by the loss of its longtime leader. Appleton was a popular executive and one of the most prominent figures in the semiconductor industry.

Appleton was widely characterized as something of a daredevil, a stunt flyer who had survived a previous crash and raced motorcycles, monster cars and off-road vehicles. He also cut a maverick figure in the industry, shepherding Micron through a turbulent battle against much larger Asian competitors in the boom-and-bust market for memory chips.

“We are deeply saddened by Steve’s loss and will miss his hand at the helm,” Durcan said in the company’s statement. “I have provided the board my ongoing commitment to work with the management team and continue to move the company forward.”

–Shara Tibken and Don Clark contributed to this article.

SOURCE: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/micron-technology-appoints-mark-durcan-as-ceo-2012-02-04

Corning’s prediction, ahead of its annual investor meeting in New York on Friday, signals confidence that it can grow its top line by selling more fiber-optic cable, smartphone cover glass and other products. Reduced demand for LCD glass — the product that represents the bulk of the company’s profit and sales — has crimped its financial performance of late.

“We now expect the telecommunications, specialty materials, environmental technologies and life sciences business segments to be the primary drivers of increased sales and profits going forward,” Chief Financial Officer Jim Flaws said in a statement.

The company said it expects LCD glass sales to be flat through 2014. Corning also reiterated its recent comments that LCD glass price declines are weighing on the company’s profitability.

Shares were up 1.5% to $13.13 in recent premarket trading.

SOURCE: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/corning-sees-non-lcd-operations-driving-growth-2012-02-03

For the new year, the company forecast earnings of $5.04 to $5.20 a share on revenue growth of 4% to 6%, bracketing the $5.11 and 5% estimates from analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters.

The company, which provide information technology to the financial and insurance industries, has seen revenue grow in recent quarters on better results in its processing and services arm. But severance and debt-reduction charges have hurt its bottom line lately.

President and Chief Executive Jeffery Yabuki said revenue growth in the latest period was at its highest level in more than three years.

Fiserv reported a profit of $143 million, or $1.01 a share, up from $116 million, or 78 cents a share, a year earlier. Excluding items such as amortization of acquisition-related assets and early debt extinguishment, adjusted earnings from continuing operations rose to $1.26 from $1.06. Revenue climbed 7.7% to $1.16 billion.

Analysts had most recently forecast earnings of $1.27 on revenue of $1.13 billion.

Processing-and-services revenue, which makes up most of the company’s business, rose 5.2%. Product revenue increased 18%.

Shares closed at $63.11 Thursday and were unchanged after hours. The stock is up 11% in the past three months.

SOURCE: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/fiserv-earnings-up-23-on-higher-revenue-2012-02-02

President Shuichi Takayama will hold a news conference the same day to explain the results, a company spokeswoman said.

The Japanese maker of cameras and medical imaging equipment last year restated its accounts for the past five years following revelations of a $1.5 billion loss-hiding scandal.

SOURCE: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/olympus-plans-to-report-april-dec-results-feb-13-2012-01-26

Shares were up 7.3% at $17.31 after hours on the company’s better-than-expected outlook. Through the close, shares have risen 14% in the last year, better than the broader market.

The company predicted adjusted first-quarter earnings of 22 to 33 cents a share on revenue of $360 million to $400 million. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expected 15 cents and $296 million respectively.

The company’s results have been faltering in recent quarters, as its chip-maker clientele faces wilting demand. The company swung a loss from continuing operations before income taxes of $9.2 million in the latest period versus a year-earlier profit of $50.8 million. The latest period included a $134 million tax-provision benefit.

But overall, Teradyne posted a profit of $125.1 million, or 56 cents a share, from $60.1 million, or 27 cents a share, a year earlier. The latest results included acquisition costs and pension settlement, while the previous year’s results included employee severance and a facility-related benefit. Excluding items, earnings from continuing operations fell to 16 cents a share from 35 cents.

Revenue decreased 4.2% to $297 million.

In October, Teradyne forecast adjusted per-share earnings of 8 cents to 16 cents on revenue between $270 million and $300 million.

Gross margin fell to 45.9% from 52.7%.

SOURCE: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/teradyne-earnings-jump-on-tax-benefit-shares-up-2012-01-25

His decision to leave the casual-apparel retailer comes after Gap shook up management last year, including ousting its top designer, as part of a turn-around plan.

After Tom Wyatt departs, effective Feb. 3, to become the chief executive of Knowledge Universe United States, Gap plans for two Old Navy veterans–division Chief Creative Officer Nancy Green and Tom Sands, executive vice president of stores and operations for Old Navy–to lead Old Navy in the interim.

It will conduct a formal search for a permanent president of Old Navy.

Wyatt, 56, joined Gap in 2006 and had led Old Navy since August 2008.

The company said Green has more than 19 years of experience within Gap, having started as a merchandise trainee in 1986. Sands will take on additional operational functions within the brand. Sands has held senior operations roles within Gap, having previously worked at Target Corp. (TGT).

Lately, Gap’s earnings have been sliding, although its bottom lines have been exceeding guidance after several key trend misses in recent years. In October, the retailer said it would shut 21% of its namesake North American stores over the next two years, coming to terms with the overextension of its store network before the recession and predictions that U.S. growth will be slow.

Shares were down 1.3% at $19.12 after hours.

SOURCE: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/gaps-old-navy-pres-leaves-for-education-company-2012-01-19

The projected expenditures include roughly $300 million of sustaining capital and $700 million of funds aimed at improving growth and productivity.

The coal and iron-ore producer’s earnings have been soaring in recent quarters as both sales volume and prices climb. Cliffs has said it is looking to consolidate its foothold in Asian markets as part of a plan to push its share of revenue from international sales above 50%.

On Thursday, Cliffs said it will spend $60 million in the U.S. to extend the life of its Empire iron ore mine to 2015, among other projects.

In eastern Canada, the company plans to spend $470 million boosting iron ore production at a major mine, with an additional $45 million earmarked for port and rail upgrades. Cliffs plans to spend $40 million on capacity expansion in Western Australia.

The company also expects to spend about $50 million on growing production of steelmaking coal from its mines in West Virginia.

Cliffs plans to start production at a chromite deposit in northern Ontario in 2015. A recent study of the area led the company to expand its output estimate to 1 million tons of chromite ore on top of the 600,000 tons of ferrochrome expected from the site.

Shares closed at $72.03 and were inactive after hours. The stock is off 18% over the past year.

SOURCE: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/cliffs-natural-resources-outlines-1b-capex-plan-2012-01-19

Shares rose 7.1% to $37.82 after hours as the company predicted its fourth-quarter revenue would rebound by 2% to 6% sequentially, delivering between $521.3 million and $541.8 million in sales. Analysts’ average estimate called for $511 million, according to a poll by Thomson Reuters.

Xilinx’s sales have soured over the past two quarters as the semiconductor company’s communications customers, particularly in the wireless sector, hold back on new orders.

At the same time, President and Chief Executive Moshe Gavrielov has touted the company’s efforts to improve its margins during the sales downturn. Xilinx makes chips for devices ranging from cellphone-base stations to DVD players, though communications products still accounted for 43% of its top line in the latest quarter.

For the period ended Dec. 31, earnings fell to $127 million, or 47 cents a share, down from $152.3 million, or 58 cents a share, a year earlier. The latest quarter’s result included a six-cent per-share tax benefit. Analysts were expecting a 37-cent profit.

Revenue was $511.1 million, down 9.9% from a year earlier and 7.9% below the second-quarter result. The company’s lowered December projection called for a 9% to 12% sequential decline, which would have delivered between $488.6 million and $505.2 million.

Gross margin edged up to 65.8% from 65.7%, above the company’s December target of about 65%.

Sales to Xilinx’s communications end market fell 13%, while the company’s Asia Pacific region reported the steepest revenue drop with a 17% decline in sales.

SOURCE: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/xilinxs-net-falls-17-on-wireless-weakness-2012-01-18