The Virginian-Pilot
                            THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT  
              Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: Thursday, January 23, 1997            TAG: 9701230489
SECTION: BUSINESS                PAGE: D1   EDITION: FINAL 
                                            LENGTH:   47 lines

DAILY DIGEST

NationsBank plans 2-for-1 stock split

NationsBank Corp. said Wednesday it is will split its stock 2-for-1. Under the split, the number of the company's shares will double, but their value will be halved. NationsBank, the nation's fifth-largest banking company, has about 384 million shares outstanding. In afternoon trading, NationsBank shares were at $108.75 on the New York Stock Exchange, up $2 each. The split will occur Feb. 27 for shareholders of record Feb. 7. (Dow Jones News)

Ball Corp. buys land to expand James City plant

Ball Corp. has bought 11.25 acres for $393,750 next to its James City County can-making plant for a proposed expansion. Ball is the first company to buy land in the James River Commerce Center. The park is co-owned by Williamsburg Developments Inc., which is a Colonial Williamsburg subsidiary, and the county's Industrial Development Authority. The plant, which employs about 225 people and has more than 250,000 square feet, produces more than 2 billion cans a year. About $1 million of infrastructure is going into the park, including a 1,600-foot access road. (Associated Press)

GAO: Loan defaults higher at black colleges

The rate of student loan defaults at historically black colleges and universities was triple the rate of other institutions in fiscal 1993, says a new analysis by the General Accounting Office. The congressional watchdog agency also said the average default at the black schools, $464,209 per school, was nearly four times higher than that of nonblack institutions in 1992, the latest year for which figures were available. The report said that because of their high default rates, 22 of the nation's historically black institutions could lose their eligibility to take part in the program in July 1998, unless Congress extends an exemption. (AP)

Internet provider sues another industry giant

A small Internet provider is taking on another industry giant, filing a lawsuit against America Online just three months after settling one with CompuServe. Log On America reached an out-of-court settlement in October that allowed it to continue using a logo CompuServe said was too similar to its own. This time, the issue is whether Log On America's name is too similar to America Online's. Log On America, founded in 1992, began using the name to provide Internet access in 1993. AOL began providing Internet access in 1995, although it earlier offered other on-line services such as e-mail. (AP)


by CNB