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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Coldwater Creek Hot Regional Stock In ‘97

Coldwater Creek shares doubled in 1997, and so outperformed those of all other Inland Northwest companies in 1997.

The Sandpoint mail-order house closed the year at $33.75, twice the closing price on its first day of trading last January.

By comparison, Pegasus Gold stock seemed to tumble into one of the company’s open-pit mines, closing the year off as the dross not only locally, but globally.

By falling almost 92 percent on the American Stock Exchange, to 62 cents, shares of the Spokane-based gold mine operator placed third among the worst performers in that market, second worst among Northwest stocks, and third worst among those tracked in the Dow Jones Global Index.

Other mining stocks also suffered, although Sunshine Mining rode a late rise in silver prices to eke out a 7 percent gain, edging up 6 cents to close the year at $1.

Coeur d’Alene Mines tumbled 41 percent to $8.94, Hecla Mining 12 percent to $4.94.

Gold Reserve sank 62 percent to $3.63.

Other prominent losers were Key Tronic, down 42 percent to $4.38, and Kaiser Aluminum, off 24 percent to $8.88.

Two Spokane financial stocks trailed Coldwater in the best-performer sweepstakes.

Sterling Financial jumped 54 percent to $21.75, helped by favorable court rulings that will affect its claims against the federal government for $100 million.

United Security Bancorporation was right behind, gaining 50 percent. Shares of the holding company for three Eastern Washington banks finished the year at $20.50.

Two smaller banks registered more modest increases.

Inland Northwest Bank climbed 4 percent to $20.50. Idaho Independent Bank was up 12 percent to $16.50.

Mountain West Bank finished unchanged at $12.50.

Washington Water Power closed at $24.94, a 30 percent bump. Utilities in general had a good year as declining interest rates heightened the appeal of their dividends.

As for other local companies, Egghead stock gained 25 percent to $6.56, Itron 1 percent to $18, and Potlatch was even for the year at $43.

, DataTimes