Owens & Minor Inc.

	'96 (in $ 000s)	% Change From '95
Revenue	3,019,003	1.4
Net Income	12,965	--
Rank Last Year: 9

Description:
Owens & Minor is one of the nation's largest wholesalers of medical and surgical supplies and other health-care products, selling to hospitals, nursing homes and other integrated health-care systems throughout the United States. In some cases the company directly manages inventories for its customers.

Business Resume: Contact Info -- 4800 Cox Rd. Glen Allen, Va. 23060 804-747-9794 Main Business -- Medical, surgical supplies Founded -- 1882 Chairperson -- G. Gilmer Minor III (CEO) President -- G. Gilmer Minor III Employees -- 3,425

Developments:
Owens & Minor has rebounded from a disappointing 18-month period in which profits evaporated amid problems with the acquisition of Stuart Medical Inc., a firm it bought in 1994. The company fattened its profit margins by raising prices across the board for its products and services and by implementing cost-saving initiatives, primarily the elimination of more than 400 full-time positions and more efficient use of computer resources.

In November Owens & Minor received a Pentagon contract to deliver $38.1 million in medical supplies to military installations in the South. The company also signed a five-year, $125 million distribution agreement with HealthSouth Corp., the nation's largest provider of rehabilitative health care service.