7444 W. Wilson Ave., Chicago 60656, 708-867-9600
COMPANY
Founded: 1946
Year-end: April 30
Employees: 2,500; 1,997 in Illinois
Foreign sales: 11 percent of $172 million
Stock: 365-day close
High: $18
Low: $14
April 29: $17.50
May 1, 1994, value of $1,000 in company stock
Purchased 1993: $1,129
Purchased 1989: $7,368
CHIEF EXECUTIVE
William J. McGinley, 70, since 1946
Cash compensation: $870,876, up 7 percent
Options granted: None
Options, stock appreciation rights exercised: None
Shares owned: 916,711 of 21.8 million Class A; 890,902 of 1.3 million Class B
Restricted stock: 75,790 shares
Methode Electronics entered the ranks of the Top 100 companies after finishing at No. 101 last year. The boost was fueled by world interest in telecommunications and computer electronics, in which Methode is a leading parts supplier.
Fiscal 1993 sales rose to $172 million from $148 million a year earlier, and profits increased 55 percent. The company says it is looking to developing markets to fuel growth. Methode says that because much of its product line consists of electronic components for cars, appliances and telephones, booming Asian markets are appealing.
Methode devices will provide fiber-optic telephone capacities at the new Denver airport. In addition, Methode has acquired Mikon Ltd. of Haverhill, England, a maker of fiber-optic cable assemblies and connectors.
