Banking & Finance

Milwaukee-based Brady Corp. today announced that it has completed the first phase of the previously announced two-step divestiture of its European and Asian Die-Cut businesses to Boyd Corp., a provider of specialty material-based environmental and energy management solutions. Brady announced in February that it reached an agreement to sell its Die-Cut business to Boyd Corp. in a two-step process.

The frigid winter weather at the start of this year helped freeze earnings for Milwaukee-based shoe manufactuer Weyco Group Inc.

Milwaukee-based Wisconsin Energy Corp. today reported first quarter net income of $207.6 million, or 91 cents per share, up from $176.6 million, or 76 cents per share, in the first quarter of 2013.

Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. reported first quarter net income of $8.6 million, or a loss of $2.29 per share, up from $3 million, or 19 cents per share, in the first quarter of 2013.

Brookfield-based Fiserv Inc. reported first quarter net income of $168 million, or 65 cents per share, up from $117 million, or 43 cents per share, in the first quarter of 2013.

Milwaukee-based Klement's Sausage Co. is for sale and could be sold as soon as today.

Milwaukee-based private investment group SFM Investments LLC has acquired the assets of St. Francis-based Fontarome Chemical Inc. and its wholly owned French subsidiary FCI SAS out of chapter 128 receivership.

Brookfield-based Sitzberger Widmann & Company S.C. and Milwaukee-based Hau & Associates have merged their public accounting firms.

First Business Financial Services Inc., the Madison-based parent company of First Business Bank-Milwaukee, reported first quarter net income of $3.3 million, or 84 cents per share, up from $3.2 million, or 83 cents per share, in the first quarter of 2013.

After a moderate expansion in 2013, the pace of Wisconsin's economic recovery is picking up in 2014, according to a special report by BMO Economics on the economic output from the Great Lakes region.