F6 The Plain Dealer | cleveland.com MN Sunday, March 9, 2014 BUSINESS Stock market: Five years later Local shares bounce back from Great Recession Teresa Dixon Murray tmurray@plaind.com In March 2009, stock market indexes began a long climb out of the depths of the Great Recession. In the last five years, many companies — nationally and locally — have seen share prices soar and dividends increase. Here is a look at the total fiveyear return of 62 area companies. Most are in Greater Cleveland. A few are outside the immediate region but are of keen interest to local investors, consumers and workers. The total return includes appreciation in the share price and income including dividends. So if you invested $1,000 in a stock back in March 2009 and the return since then was 100 percent, you’d have $2,000. If the total return in the last five years was 2,738 percent, as is the case with PolyOne Corp. of Avon Lake, your $1,000 investment would now be worth $28,380. If you’d invested the same $1,000 with Cedar Fair, parent of Cedar Point, your investment would now be worth $11,240. In many cases, the returns wouldn’t be quite so incredible: $1,000 then in J.M. Smucker Co., Progressive Corp. or A. Schulman Inc. of Fairlawn would be worth about $3,000 today. In some cases, the fabulous returns are a reflection of how low the stock has sunk during the financial meltdown of 2008 and early 2009. In other cases, the return reflects how well the company has done since then. Likewise, at the bottom of the list: In a few cases, the companies haven’t performed well in the last five years. In other cases, like CBIZ Inc. of Independence, the company’s stock price didn’t fall much during the meltdown (only about 19 percent) and has gained since then (40 percent), but the growth has been more modest compared with other companies that plummeted and then rebounded. In the case of FirstEnergy Corp. of Akron, the electric utility has been undergoing a turnaround after posting big losses in 2012. The company has made bad bets on reselling electricity and has gotten squeezed because the price of power hasn’t recovered because of the economy and competition from natural gas. As a result, your $1,000 investment in FirstEnergy in 2009 would be worth only $1,070 today. T he five-year re turns are through Thursday; the share prices and year-to-date returns are as of Wednesday. Company name Headquarters Industry Ticker Total return (Last 5 years) Wednesday’s close PolyOne Corp. Park Ohio Holdings Libbey Inc. Fifth Third Bancorp Chart Industries Nacco Industries Shiloh Industries L Brands Inc. Ferro Corp. Ddr Corp. DSW Inc. Omnova Solutions Cedar Fair Huntington Bank Transdigm Group United Community (Home Savings) Owens Corning Goodyear Tire Cooper Tire & Rubber Myers Industries Nordson Corp. Datatrak Intl. Timken Co. Athersys Inc. Lincoln Electric Sifco Industries Rpm International Inc. Ourpet's Co. Sherwin-Williams Travelcenters Of America Forest City Parker Hannifin Associated Estates Applied Industrial Tech. A. Schulman J.M. Smucker Co. Progressive Corp. Materion Corp. Keycorp Steris Corp. Olympic Steel American Electric Abercrombie & Fitch Lnb Bancorp Inc. National Interstate Wayne Savings Preformed Line Products OM Group Inc. Diebold Inc. FirstMerit Corp. GrafTech Intl. Middlefield Banc Cliffs Natural Resources National Bancshares Ohio Morgan's Foods CBIZ Inc. Invacare Corp. TFS Financial Co (Third Federal) AK Steel Hldg. FirstEnergy Corp. Central Federal First Place Financial* Avon Lake Cleveland Toledo Cincinnati Garfield Heights Cleveland Valley City Columbus Mayfield Heights Beachwood Columbus Fairlawn Sandusky Columbus Cleveland Youngstown Toledo Akron Findlay Akron Westlake Mayfield Heights Canton Cleveland Cleveland Cleveland Medina Fairport Harbor Cleveland Westlake Cleveland Cleveland Richmond Heights Cleveland Fairlawn Orville Mayfield Mayfield Heights Cleveland Mentor Bedford Heights Columbus New Albany Lorain Richfield Wooster Mayfield Cleveland North Canton Akron Parma Middlefield Cleveland Orville Cleveland Independence Elyria Cleveland West Chester Akron Fairlawn Warren Polymers Manufacturing Tableware Banking Manufacturing Small appliances Automotive Apparel Specialty chemicals Shopping malls; real estate Footwear retailer Polymers, specialty chemicals Amusement parks Banking Aerospace components Banking Glass fiber products Tires Tires Polymer products Diversified machinery Clinical trial technology Mechanical components, bearings Biotechnology Small tools Aerospace metal fabrication Specialty chemicals Pet products Paints and coatings Gas and food travel stops Property management Industrial, aerospace equipment Apartments, real estate Industrial equipment Plastic compounds, resins Jelly, peanut butter, coffee, other foods Insurance Industrial metals, minerals Banking Medical appliances, equipment Metal fabrication Electric utilities Apparel Banking Specialty insurance Banking Industrial electrical equipment Specialty chemicals ATMs, check-cashing machines Banking Industrial electrical equipment Banking Industrial metals, minerals Banking Franchise restaurants Professional business services Medical appliances, equipment Banking Steel and iron Electric utilities Banking Banking POL PKOH LBY FITB GTLS NC SHLO LB FOE DDR DSW OMN FUN HBAN TDG UCFC OC GT CTB MYE NDSN DTRK TKR ATHX LECO SIF RPM OPCO SHW TA FCE-A PH AEC AIT SHLM SJM PGR MTRN KEY STE ZEUS AEP ANF LNBB NATL WAYN PLPC OMG DBD FMER GTI MBCN CLF NBOH MRFD CBZ IVC TFSL AKS FE CFBK FPFCQ 2,738% 2,538% 2,440% 1,781% 1,490% 1,320% 1,314% 1,303% 1,301% 1,248% 1,165% 1,100% 1,024% 939% 777% 757% 752% 705% 676% 629% 625% 567% 562% 538% 503% 492% 456% 422% 413% 408% 387% 368% 334% 287% 221% 217% 195% 188% 173% 169% 155% 152% 157% 147% 146% 138% 136% 135% 128% 102% 95% 75% 63% 60% 55% 41% 34% 12% 11% 7% -87% -99.9% $37.74 $52.52 $23.78 $22.20 $86.77 $56.60 $17.97 $57.51 $13.51 $16.72 $39.35 $9.80 $51.91 $9.65 $181.15 $4.11 $45.30 $27.49 $23.60 $21.14 $72.84 $8.75 $60.48 $3.79 $74.67 $27.98 $42.78 $1.20 $203.28 $9.33 $19.53 $121.91 $17.66 $51.55 $34.72 $98.43 $24.30 $30.74 $13.36 $46.99 $27.34 $49.68 $41.61 $11.48 $30.30 $11.50 $61.65 $33.55 $37.90 $21.06 $10.45 $27.05 $19.10 $20.80 $3.10 $9.27 $19.83 $11.95 $6.14 $31.06 $1.58 $0.001 2014 return 6.76% 0.23% 13.24% 5.56% -9.27% -8.6% -7.85% -4.7% 5.3% 8.78% -7.91% 7.57% 4.7% 0 12.5% 15.13% 11.25% 15.51% -1.38% 0.09% -1.71% 29.63% 10.29% 51.6% 4.67% -0.32% 3.64% 31.87% 11.09% -4.21% 2.25% -4.83% 11.37% 5.55% -0.97% -4.42% -5.15% -0.07% -0.03% -1.75% -5.59% 7.41% 27.04% 14.56% 31.74% 6.35% -15.73% -7.64% 15.73% -4.52% -6.95% 5.04% -26.63% -4.85% 6.9% 1.64% -14.56% -1.36% -25.12% -4.7% 18.8% 60.0% * First Place Financial was acquired by Talmer Bank last month. THE PLAIN DEALER SOURCE: Bloomberg News BALANCE from F3 According to the Gallup Organization, the number of “actively disengaged workers” continues to be twice the number of engaged employees, defined as emotionally invested in their organizations. Those engaged employees are the ones that work hardest, stay longest and perform best. Of the country’s roughly 100 million fulltime employees, an alarming 70 million — 70 percent — are either not engaged at work or actively “checked out,” Gallup found. Harter believes employers need to shift their focus from pampering, which can create a sense of entitlement, to making employees feel like partners. A good manager drives that connection, he says. “If you’re offering perks and not putting energy toward hiring and developing excellent managers, you’re going about it the wrong way.” If a bad manager creates a disengaging environment, you can’t “free lunch” your way to engagement. “You can’t cover that up.” To get the most from a worker, scrap the jeans day, forgo the latte machines and think about what workers truly want to feel connected to their work and their company. In studying “Great Places to Work,” researchers found employees want to feel the work they are doing is important and to trust their managers care about them as individuals. “Managers can’t forget that these are people who have a life outside of work they are actively trying to manage,” said Jessica Rohman, Working at a nuclear power plant is more intense than a 9-to-5 job, but Florida Power & Light’s Turkey Point nuclear power plant has lured 700 full-time employees through benefits like on-site day care, a fitness center, softball league, boat ramp and picnic area, and a work schedule that provides every other Friday off. program director at Great Place to Work Institute. Even employees at companies considered great places to work report disengagement when bosses don’t understand how accommodating unplanned life needs affects work commitment. “It’s that understanding that fosters a sense of trust,” Rohman said. Increasingly, employers are realizing that what attracts talent differs from what keeps strong performers engaged. Working at a nuclear plant is more intense than a 9-to-5 job, but Florida Power & Light’s Turkey Point nuclear power plant has lured 700 full-time employees through benefits like on-site day care, a fitness center, softball league, boat ramp and picnic area, and a work schedule that provides every other Friday off. FPL Vice President Michael Kiley knows the benefits are just one component. An ongoing interest in employees’ career path and a sense of teamwork are what inspire discretionary effort from employees, he says. “They don’t want to let down their peers.” Even financial incentives such as bonuses don’t have a long-term effect on engagement, he’s found. “Engagement is really about what you do every day to make employees feel part of a team. They need to know how they make that team better every day.” Engaged workers are clear on expectations, feel accountable but also receive the freedom — possibly even flexibility — to get their work done, said Gallup’s Harter. Beetson, DPR Construction’s regional leader in West Palm Beach, has found that to be true at her national commercial construction company. On each construction site, the manager discusses goals, inquires about expectations at home, and decides on work schedules that accommodate individual needs. “Letting the team work it out definitely helps with engagement,” Beetson said. Get the formula right and workers at all life stages will stay engaged. Ten months after giving birth to twin daughters, Jodi Santos says she remains among the 30 percent of U.S. workers who are engaged with their jobs. Santos, a nuclear oversight inspector at FPL’s Turkey Point, credits a combination of influences. She enjoys having her girls at the on-site day care and uses the flexible work schedule that allows every other Friday off. She likes the camaraderie and teamwork that is encouraged through picnics and events. But mostly, she stays engaged because her supervisor has worked with her to create a career path that allows growth while providing her work-life balance. She recently changed departments to a quality assurance position that doesn’t require her to deal with middle-ofthe-night emergencies. “I still have the feeling of being part of the big picture,” she said. Boosting engagement, particularly at stagnant organizations, is no easy task. But Gallup research shows attempting to reverse the worldwide trend is well worth the effort. Organizations are more profitable when their employees are more engaged, and employees benefit, too. Gallup has discovered that engagement has a larger effect on employee well-being than any other benefits, such as wellness programs or vacation time. “Employees who are engaged are more than three times as likely to be thriving in their overall lives,” Harter said. “They are happier, healthier and more interested at work.” Krischer Goodman is CEO of BalanceGal LLC, a provider of news and advice on how to balance work and life. Email: balancegal@gmail.com Energy Analyst says shale boom to lead to volatility in natural gas prices John Funk jfunk@plaind.com Columbus — The widely held belief that shale gas has given the nation a 100-year gas supply has funded a drilling frenzy and a temporary surplus — setting the stage for higher and more volatile prices in the near future. “Personally, I don’t think a 100year supply exists, but what’s important is the belief that it does,” James Halloran, energy analyst and board member of the Ohio Oil and Gas Association, told a luncheon crowd at the group’s annual winter conference last week. This year’s conference drew 1,500 attendees and 80 companies. “My outlook is that we will see growing volatility and that we will get to $6 gas [from $4 today] by the end of the decade,” Halloran said following a luncheon hosted by the Society of Petroleum Engineers. Likening the current state of energy analysis to Alice in Wonderland and the Cheshire Cat, Halloran laid out key new gas demands that will soak up supplies unless drilling goes into an even higher gear. Today, the nation uses roughly 70 billion cubic feet of natural gas every day, he said. By 2020, that demand will probably be about 90 billion cubic feet. The new demand will come from: 3 Gas-fired power plants displac- ing coal — 5 billion cubic feet a day. 3 Chemical and plastic plants on the Gulf of Mexico — 3 billion cubic feet a day. 3 Manufacturing and industrial demand — 3 billion cubic feet a day. 3 Exports to Mexico and some to Canada — 3 billion cubic feet, as early as 2017. 3 Liquefied natural gas, “the wild card” — could be 6 billion cubic feet. 3 CNG cars and LNG trucks — indeterminate at this point. These healthy increases in demand will come as many shale gas fields with horizontal wells will go into steep decline, said Halloran, leading to more drilling and to a strong return of old-fashioned vertical wells. But many of the old-style wells can’t compete at today’s prices. The result? The new demand will drive up prices — from today’s $4 to $4.50 per million BTUs, (about 1,000 cubic feet) to about $6 to $6.50, he said The $6 rate is the “balancing price,” he explained, just enough money to increase supply to meet all that new demand. But before that point is reached, shale gas development will continue to surge, driven by private investors looking for a place to invest — and believing that the shale guarantees a 100-year supply.