Business in brief: Advantage IQ president named

Jeff Heggedahl will take over as president and chief executive officer of Advantage IQ on Dec. 1.

The utility expense-management and billing subsidiary of Avista Corp. has been under the interim leadership of Ed Schlect since former president and CEO Stu Stiles left in June to do missionary work.

Heggedahl, 44, has been president and CEO of Scantron Corp. of Minneapolis. Scantron provides educational, commercial and government institutions with software and other tools to measure performance.

“His experience in integrating resources, growing market share and containing costs will be invaluable as we continue to take this company forward,” said Scott Morris, chairman of Advantage IQ and Avista Corp.

Advantage IQ employs 650 people.

Bert Caldwell

Nighthawk sees Q3 earnings dip

Coeur d’Alene-based Nighthawk Radiology on Thursday reported third-quarter net earnings of $1.7 million, or 7 cents a share. That compares with $3.2 million, or 11 cents a share, from the same quarter one year earlier.

The company employs radiologists who read and interpret radiology scans that are sent to them by health care providers nationwide over a private Internet network.

Quarterly gross revenue was $43.5 million, driven by a record 865,000 scans, company officials said.

Scan revenue increased 40 percent from the same quarter a year earlier.

The company said fourth quarter revenue is expected to be $38 million to $40 million with earnings per share of 8 to 10 cents.

Tom Sowa

Mortgage rates down slightly

Washington – Rates for 30-year home loans dipped below 5 percent this week after rising for three straight weeks.

The average rate fell to 4.98 percent from 5.03 percent a week earlier, mortgage company Freddie Mac said Thursday.

Rates had hovered below 5 percent for nearly a month until inching upward two weeks ago.

The average rate on a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage declined to 4.40 percent from 4.46 percent recorded last week.

Associated Press