First quarter tough on Arkansas stocks (updated)

Editor’s note: This post has been updated to correct the stock prices for Tyson Foods.

Few of the publicly held companies based in Arkansas saw their stock price improve in the first quarter of 2009, with one of the biggest quarterly stock declines being suffered by Fort Smith-based Arkansas Best Corp.

Arkansas Best, one of the nation’s largest less-than-truckload companies, saw its stock drop from $30.62 on Jan. 2 to $19.02 on Mar. 31, a 37.8% drop.

However, the entire nation saw few glimmers of stock appreciation in the first quarter. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 15.7% in the quarter (ending Mar. 31 at 7,608.92), and the S&P 500 fell 14.3% in the quarter (ending Mar. 31 at 797.870).

The two other publicly held companies based in the area also saw stock price declines in the quarter. Shares of Fort Smith-based Baldor Electric Co. closed Mar. 31 at $14.49, down 21.5% from the Jan. 2 close of $18.48. Van Buren-based USA Truck Inc. saw its stock decline 6.7% in the quarter, closing at $12.93 on Mar. 31.

Although not based in the area, Whirlpool is a stock that is closely watched. Unfortunately, its shares fell 32.1% in the quarter, ending Mar. 31 at $29.59.

OTHER ARKANSAS STOCKS
Acxiom (Conway)
Jan. 2: $8.03
Mar. 31: $7.40
7.8% decline

America’s Car-Mart (Bentonville)
Jan. 2: $13.73
Mar. 31: $13.59
1% decline

Acxiom (Conway)
Jan. 2: $8.03
Mar. 31: $7.40
7.8% decline

Bank of the Ozarks (Little Rock)
Jan. 2: $29.49
Mar. 31: $23.08
21.7% decline

Dillard’s (Little Rock)
Jan. 2: $4.27
Mar. 31: $5.70
33.4% increase

J.B. Hunt (Lowell)
Jan. 2: $26.72
Mar. 31: $24.11
9.7% decline

Murphy Oil Corp. (El Dorado)
Jan. 2: $47.45
Mar. 31: $44.77
5.6% decline

Tyson Foods (Springdale)
Jan. 2: $9.35
Mar. 31: $9.39
0.1% increase

Wal-Mart Stores (Bentonville)
Jan. 2: $57.18
Mar. 31: $52.10
8.8% decline