Feb. 25 / Ambassadors executives step down

Ambassadors Group Inc., the Spokane-based educational travel-program provider, said top company executives Jeffrey and Margaret Thomas have resigned. Jeffrey Thomas had been the company's president and CEO and had served on its board. Margaret Thomas, his wife, had been the company's executive vice president and the president and COO of its operating subsidiary Ambassadors Programs. Anthony Dombrowik, the company's senior vice president and CFO, has assumed the role of interim CEO while the board conducts a search for a new CEO.

Feb. 25 / Hecla's earnings plummet

Hecla Mining Co., of Coeur d'Alene, reported 2012 fourth-quarter net income of $605,000, equating to no per-share earnings, down from $18.4 million, or 6 cents a share, in the year-earlier quarter. For all of 2012, the company reported net income of $14.4 million, or five cents a share, down from $150.6 million, or 51 cents a share, in 2011. Its performance was hampered by the lengthy closure of the Lucky Friday mine, but the silver shaft now has reopened, and President and CEO Phillips S. Baker Jr. says the company expects its silver production to increase more than 25 percent this year.

Feb. 21 / Coeur posts quarterly gain, decline for year

Coeur d'Alene Mines Corp., of Coeur d'Alene, said it had 2012 fourth-quarter net income of $37.6 million, or 43 cents a diluted share, up from $11.4 million, or 13 cents a share, in the year-earlier quarter. For all of last year, however, the company reported net income of $48.7 million, or 54 cents a share, down from $93.5 million, or $1.05 a share, in 2011. The company produced 18 million ounces of silver last year, a 6 percent decline from the prior year, but said its gold production increased 3 percent, to about 226,000 ounces.

Feb. 21 / Red Lion sells Missoula hotel

Spokane-based Red Lion Hotels Corp. said it has sold the 76-room Red Lion Inn Missoula in Montana to RASM Properties LLC for $1.95 million. The new owner agreed to convert the hotel into a Red Lion franchise under the name Red Lion Inn & Suites Missoula and is investing in property upgrades, says Jon E. Eliassen, Red Lion's president and CEO. Red Lion, which announced in November that it was listing the Missoula hotel for sale, recently has been selling some properties and focusing more on franchising as a way to trim costs.

Feb. 20 / Avista sees earnings dip

Avista Corp., of Spokane, posted 2012 fourth-quarter net income of $15.9 million, or 26 cents a diluted share, down from $24.6 million, or 43 cents a share, in the year-earlier quarter. For all of last year, the company reported net income of $78.2 million, or $1.32 a share, down from $100.2 million, or $1.72 a share. Scott L. Morris, Avista's chairman, president, and CEO, says warmer weather contributed to the lower earnings, but says the company believes—following regulatory approval of rate increases in Washington and Idaho—that it's well-positioned for significant improvement in earnings this year.

Feb. 19 / Delta plans Spokane-L.A. fights

The Spokane Airport Board and Delta Air Lines said the airline will offer nonstop daily flights between Spokane and Los Angeles starting June 10. As scheduled, a 76-seat Bombardier CRJ900 jet will depart Spokane each day at 6:45 a.m. and arrive in Los Angeles at 9:20 a.m. Delta's return flight is expected to leave Los Angeles at 7:50 p.m. and arrive in Spokane at 10:26 p.m. Delta currently provides nonstop service between Spokane and both Minneapolis and Salt Lake City.