In the Region

Motorola reportedly seeks unit buyer

Motorola Inc. is seeking to sell the division that makes equipment for cable and wireless companies for about $4.5 billion, according to a published report yesterday. The division has major operations in Horsham. A Motorola spokeswoman said the company would not comment on speculation. Motorola previously stated its goal to separate the company into two publicly traded entities, one for cell phones and the other cable and wireless equipment. "We remain committed to the separation goal and continue to believe that it is the right strategy," Motorola said. - Bob Fernandez

Region's home prices higher

The Philadelphia region's home prices continued to improve in the third quarter, although not as much as in the second, data provided by Philadelphia economist and Econsult vice president Kevin Gillen show. Prices rose 0.7 percent between June and August, compared with 3.8 percent from March through June. City prices rose 0.2 percent; the suburbs showed a 0.9 percent gain. The increases reduced the region's post-boom price decline to 10 percent, compared with 32 percent in the 10 largest U.S. cities tracked by S&P's Case-Shiller Index since the bursting of the housing bubble, Gillen said. - Alan J. Heavens

UGI Q4 loss higher; projections flat

UGI Corp., the Valley Forge energy provider, reported a slightly larger quarterly loss and reaffirmed projected flat earnings growth for the coming fiscal year. UGI, which owns the Amerigas Propane Inc. distributorship as well as gas and electric utilities, reported fourth-quarter net income of $258.5 million, or $2.36 a share, for its fiscal year ended Sept. 30, compared with $215.5 million, or $1.99 a diluted share, for the comparable period a year earlier. It recorded a quarterly net loss of 10 cents a share compared with a net loss of 6 cents a share for the same period in 2008. - Andrew Maykuth

MEDecision names new CEO

MEDecision Inc., Wayne, has named Scott A. Storrer president and chief executive officer. Storrer, 42, had been president and chief operating officer. As CEO, he will replace company founder David St. Clair, who is scheduled to retire Dec. 31. He is expected to remain on the board for the next year. MEDecision was sold last year to Health Care Service Corp., a Chicago medical-plan operator, for $121 million, and is now a wholly owned subsidiary. - Roslyn Rudolph

High rating for bond series

Two series of bonds to be sold by Chester County on Dec. 1 have been rated "AAA," the highest level, by Fitch Ratings Inc., one of the nation's major ratings services. The county will sell $41.6 million in bonds to pay for capital improvements and $61.7 million to refinance older debt. Fitch said the "AAA" rating was based on the county's "solid financial operations and reserve levels, fiscally prudent management, planning strategies, and policies, as well as its high wealth and income levels." The New York company cautioned that it considered the county's overall debt level, including that of local school districts, relatively high. - Paul Schweizer

Camden firm wins contract

The Oak Group Inc., a Camden firm specializing in construction, demolition, and facilities management for federal agencies, has been awarded a $22.8 million contract to build a rescue swimmer training facility for the U.S. Coast Guard. The facility, to be built in Elizabeth City, N.C., would include two training pools, a fitness room, locker rooms, classrooms, labs, and offices. It is designed to allow the Coast Guard to train rescue swimmers in real-world conditions as well as practice emergency aircraft and small-boat evacuation. - Christopher K. Hepp

PolyMedix to sell securities

PolyMedix Inc. will sell stock and warrants totaling up to $21 million, the Radnor biotechnology company said. The sale will be organized into units, with each unit costing $1 and consisting of one share of PolyMedix common stock and a warrant for five years to buy 0.30 additional shares of stock at $1.25 each. The sale is expected to close Monday. Proceeds will be used to continue developing two medicines, an antibiotic, and a drug that restores the body's blood-clotting ability after surgery. - Paul Schweizer

Pizzi to receive Chamber award

Charles P. Pizzi, president and chief executive officer of Tasty Baking Co., will receive the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce's 2009 William Penn Award. Pizzi was president and CEO of the chamber from 1989 to 2002. He is also the former city commerce director. The William Penn Award is given to a business executive for contributions to the region. - Christopher K. Hepp

Elsewhere

Hewlett-Packard to buy 3Com

Hewlett-Packard Co., the maker of personal computers, will buy 3Com Corp. for $2.7 billion to challenge Cisco Systems Inc. in the computer-networking market. Hewlett-Packard will pay $7.90 a share in cash for 3Com, 39 percent more than 3Com's closing price yesterday, Hewlett-Packard said in a statement. Hewlett-Packard also reported profit, excluding some items, of $1.14 a share in the fiscal fourth quarter. That topped the average estimate of $1.11 in a Bloomberg survey. - Bloomberg News

Macy's posts smaller Q3 loss

Macy's Inc.'s third-quarter loss shrank as tight inventory controls and a move to localize merchandise at its department stores by region paid off. The company also raised its full-year profit and sales outlook. The profit outlook, including a tempered forecast for the fourth quarter, did not go as high as analysts expected, and shares closed down $1.57, or 8.08 percent, at $17.86. Macy's said it lost $35 million, or 8 cents a share, in the quarter ended Oct. 31. That compares with $44 million, or 10 cents a share, in the year-earlier period. Macy's reported revenue fell almost 4 percent to $5.28 billion. - AP

Yields mixed on money funds

The average seven-day yield on taxable money market funds was 0.04 percent this week, unchanged from last week, according to iMoneyNet Inc. The average yield on tax-free funds was 0.04 percent this week, down from 0.05 percent last week. - Rhonda Dickey