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Recent Press Releases (U.S. and international) for magazine issues and staff changes may be found below. Please note that for many issues there exists only a highlights sheet, while for others there may also be a full press release. The cover of FSB's current issue is pictured at right. Please contact the appropriate communications staff member with any questions.
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FORTUNE SMALL BUSINESS RANKS AMERICA'S FASTEST-GROWING SMALL COMPANIES Manufacturing takes the lead, health care still rules, and oil has come on strong New York, June 23, 2005—Manufacturing takes the lead with 26 firms; it is the largest segment of FORTUNE Small Business magazine's fifth annual ranking of the 100 fastest growing small companies in America. The manufacturing sector is so strong that some firms on the list have grown quickly by creating products for other manufacturers; and the sector may also be catching the updraft of other trends like the real estate boom and defense spending. The FSB 100 list, which is comprised of public companies, appears in the July/August issue of FORTUNE Small Business, available on newsstands July 4 and at www.fsb.com. Topping the FSB 100 is Taser International. Based in Scottsdale, this law enforcement stun gun manufacturer introduced a new civilian model last year. At No. 2 is Laserscope (San Jose), maker of medical lasers and advanced fiber-optic devices. No. 3 NGAS Resources (Lexington, KY) harvests natural gas; and since 2002 the price of natural gas has doubled. At No. 4 is J2 Global Communications (Los Angeles); an e-fax service that transforms facsimiles into e-mail attachments for about 400,000 paying subscribers. And, No. 5, eResearchtechnology provides software and consulting services for Big Pharma and medical-device makers aimed at helping them get new products through FDA testing. Health care continues to remain strong—down only slightly from 25 companies in 2004 to 23 this year. Another safe bet for this year's list is natural resources. Higher oil prices have put nine companies in the oil, gas, or mining business on the list, compared with just three last year. And, seventeen tech companies made the list compared with just two in 2003. California tops the list of the states with the most companies on the FORTUNE Small Business 100 with 14 companies, followed by Texas and Florida with nine and New York and Pennsylvania with eight. To compile the list, FORTUNE Small Business asked financial research firm Zacks to screen annual reports for public companies with annual revenue of less than $200 million and a stock price of more than $1. Within that group, companies were ranked based on the past three years' earnings growth, revenue growth, and stock performance. Real estate firms and banks, which had begun to override the list in recent years, were not considered for the list this year. # # # For further information please contact:
Jenna Landry
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