FORBES examines Cobra Golf (No. 19) and Bollinger Industries
(No. 41) on their list of the 200 Best Small Companies in America.
Cobra, a Carlsbad, CA-based company, which specializes in irons
with oversized heads and graphite shafts, earned $7.7M on sales of
$56M last year. Securities analysts "expect Cobra's earnings to
jump to $19M on $112M in sales" this year, and since it went
public a year ago, "its stock price has more than doubled."
Cobra's closed at 36 3/4 yesterday, which is above its 52-week
high. Cobra's clubs, made with lightweight graphite shafts which
enable golfers to hit the ball further, are a big hit with older
golfers and women. Cobra's oversized irons -- the King Cobra line
-- has hit sales of $42M last year and are expected to top $100M
in '94 (Damon Darlin, FORBES, 11/7 issue). Bollinger Industries
is the nation's largest manufacturer and marketer of exercise
accessory products. The company earned $1.8M on sales of $45M in
the fiscal year that ended in March. In the 1stQ of this year,
Bollinger's sales jumped 60%; earnings up 54%. "Can the
Bollingers keep it up? That depends on two things: Will
Americans continue to feel guilty about keeping in shape? And
will the family retain its marketing savvy?" (Christopher Palmeri,
FORBES, 11/7 issue).
