Business Briefs for June 17

Busch Gardens Tampa Bay among top parks

Busch Gardens Tampa Bay ranked 11th among U.S. theme parks in 2010 attendance with 4.2 million patrons, a 2.4 percent increase over 2009, according to the 2010 Theme Index released Thursday by Themed Entertainment Association and Economics at AECOM.

The Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World in Lake Buena Vista ranked first with 17 million visitors.

"Both residents and tourists are coming back to the parks," said John Robinett of AECOM.

Average attendance increased 1.8 percent in North American parks, with many sectors at or close to pre-recession levels, the report stated.

Odyssey Marine plans new stock offering

Sunken treasure hunter and underwater exploration company Odyssey Marine Exploration Inc. hopes to raise $14.6 million in a new stock offering.

The Tampa-based company priced 4.8 million common stock shares at $3.05 a share, with an option to add an additional 720,000 shares. The sale is scheduled for June 21 and is underwritten by the investment banks Craig-Hallum Capital Group and B. Riley & Co. LLC.

Citigroup offers more details on hacker attack

Hackers stole information for 360,000 Citigroup Inc. U.S. credit card accounts in a recent data breach, the bank said Wednesday.

The actual number of customers affected was thought to be about 210,000, based on Citi's 2010 annual report.

The exact number of customers affected was not far off the mark. In a statement posted late Wednesday on its website, the company said 217,657 people were sent new cards along with notification letters starting June 3.

The bank said last week that hackers accessed customer names, account numbers and contact information, including email addresses. They didn't access Social Security numbers, dates of birth, card expiration dates or card security codes.

BofA's higher penalty rate to take effect soon

Customers at Bank of America should take note that starting next week, they could be subject to penalty rates as high as 29.99 percent if they're late with a payment.

The company said that starting June 25, a single late payment could result in the higher penalty rates. A late payment won't automatically trigger a higher rate. But the bank says the account will be flagged for review and the rate could be increased depending on the cardholder's payment track record.

If the rate is raised, customers will be notified at least 45 days in advance. The penalty rate will then apply only to new purchases.

WaMu says bankruptcy talks break down

Washington Mutual Inc. will scrap a proposed bankruptcy reorganization plan after negotiations to resolve shareholders' objections failed.

An attorney for Washington Mutual confirmed Thursday that talks had broken down and that the company will move forward with its existing plan. A Delaware judge last week granted Washington Mutual more time to reach an agreement with shareholders.

It filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2008.

Pandora's stock retreats to below IPO price

After intense demand drove up the price for Pandora Media Inc.'s initial public offering of stock, the shares lost nearly a quarter of their value their second day of trading.

Thursday's harsh reversal of fortune left Pandora's stock below its IPO price of $16. The shares fell $4.16, or 24 percent, to close at $13.26.

The downturn indicates the earlier euphoria about Pandora Media may have been misguided. The excitement enabled Pandora Media's IPO to sell for twice as much as an $8 target price set two weeks ago.

Research In Motion reports lower earnings

BlackBerry smartphone maker Research In Motion said Thursday that its net income declined in the latest quarter and that it is cutting an unspecified number of jobs to reduce costs.

For the three months that ended May 28, Research In Motion Ltd. earned $695 million, or $1.33 a share. That's down from $769 million, or $1.38 a share, a year ago.

Revenue for the fiscal first quarter rose 16 percent to $4.9 billion from $4.2 billion.

RIM is facing fierce competition from Apple Inc.'s iPhone and smartphones that run Google Inc.'s Android operating system.

Chrysler announces recall of 11,351 vehicles

Chrysler Group LLC is recalling 11,351 cars, minivans and other models because a manufacturing problem can cause the steering to fail.

Chrysler told the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that it doesn't know of any crashes or injuries caused by the problem, which affects 11 models from the 2011 model year.

Vehicle owners who have questions can call Chrysler at (800) 853-1403 or NHTSA at (888) 327-4236.

JetBlue grabs top carrier spot in Puerto Rico

JetBlue Airways says it has become the largest carrier in Puerto Rico, surpassing American Airlines.

JetBlue said it has secured the top spot as it announced new flights to the U.S. Virgin Islands starting Dec. 15. The airline says it grew 38 percent in Puerto Rico over the past year and has an average of 35 flights a day from the island.

American Airlines had been the main carrier but has shifted flights to Miami in recent years. The company did not comment on JetBlue's announcement.

Borders extends leases on 11 stores set to close

Borders has reached agreements with landlords to extend the leases on 11 stores it had previously asked bankruptcy court permission to close, according to court filings.

Last week the bookstore chain, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in February, asked permission to start liquidating 51 stores because of a condition for its financing. But it said at the time that it was actively working to keep them open.

Now Borders Group Inc. has 40 stores remaining on last week's closing list. However, the company said in documents filed Wednesday with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of New York that it is continuing to negotiate with landlords and that number will likely shrink.

From staff and wire reports