Company News:Costco CEO exercises more options

Costco Wholesale Corp.’s chief executive didn’t get a raise for the sixth straight year, but he exercised stock options worth more than $12 million, the company said Wednesday.

Kirkland, Wash.-based Costco, the nation’s largest wholesale club operator, said President and CEO Jim Sinegal exercised options on 300,000 shares worth about $12.8 million in 2006.

That was a jump of more than $9 million in value from the 100,000 options Sinegal exercised in 2005, the company’s annual proxy statement said. The filing did not say whether Sinegal sold the shares.

Sinegal also collected $350,000 in salary. He previously declined a $200,000 bonus after taking responsibility for errors in the company’s stock-option grants to employees.

“Nike Inc. said Wednesday that sales growth in Asia and a tax agreement with the Dutch government boosted earnings 8 percent in the second quarter for the world’s largest athletic shoe and clothing company.

Profits rose to $325.6 million, or $1.28 per share, from $301.1 million, or $1.14 per share, a year ago.

Nike said the tax benefit claimed from the Dutch agreement boosted earnings per share by 13 cents – but even without that benefit, the company beat Wall Street estimates of $1.12 per share.

Sales increased 10 percent to $3.82 billion for the quarter ended Nov. 30, up from $3.47 billion in the same period last year.

“The government’s pension insurer gave its final approval Wednesday for a plan to terminate the pensions of Delta Air Lines pilots, a key step for the carrier to resolve a multibillion-dollar issue in its bankruptcy case.

Approval of the plan means the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. would take over the pensions and pay pilots a portion of the benefits they had expected to receive from the company.

In return, the plan gives the pension agency an unsecured claim of $2.2 billion against the nation’s third biggest carrier. Holders of unsecured claims usually receive a fraction of their total claim.

“This may be the single most important settlement in the entire case,” said Marshall Huebner, attorney for Delta.

The PBGC estimated the pilot pensions were underfunded by about $3 billion, according to a court filing.

“Aramark Corp., the nation’s largest food service company, will be taken private for the second time in 22 years after shareholders on Wednesday approved a $6.3 billion leveraged buyout bid.

More than 95 percent of 375 million votes cast at the meeting approved of the bid, the company said.