Best Performers Ranked by Three-Year Average Return on Equity. (A Special Report: Scoring L.A.'s Public Companies).

SCORING L.A.'S PUBLIC COMPANIES -- A SPECIAL REPORT

Best Performers Ranked by Three-Year Average Return on Equity

                                  3-Year Avg.
Company Name                      ROE (1)      2002 ROE

Big 5 Sporting Goods              190%         592.7%
DaVita                            82.5%        265.7%
Newhall Land & Farm               54%          29.9%
Teledyne Technologies             42.8%        14.4%
American Pharmaceutical Partners  38%          25%
Edison International              37.5%        26%
Avery Dennison                    25.7%        24.3%
K-Swiss                           23.3%        20.5%
Skechers USA                      23.3%        18.1%
Ryland Group                      22.9%        27.3%
Optical Communications Prods      22.1%        0.4%
KB Home                           22%          24.7%
Ixia                              21.7%        2.3%
Apex Mortgage Capital             21%          27.1%
Hot Topic                         20.9%        21.5%
Wellpoint Health Network          19.9%        17.6%
Laser-Pacific Media               18.8%        6.3%
Qualstar                          18.8%        5.8%
Occidental Petroleum              18.5%        18.4%
Learning Tree Intl                18.2%        10.3%
Guitar Center                     18%          16.3%
City National                     17.3%        16.5%
Nara Bancorp                      17.2%        17.3%
Macerich                          17.1%        7.3%
Cathay Bancorp                    17%          16.9%
East-West Bancorp                 16.9%        16.1%
Pacific Crest Capital             16.8%        16.3%
Amgen                             16.7%        -7.6%
Mercury Air Group                 16.2%        14.9%
Equity Marketing                  16%          14.6%
99 Cents Only                     15.8%        14.9%
Hanmi Financial                   15.8%        13.7%
Superior Industries Intl          15.7%        14.8%
Wilshire States Bank              15.6%        18.9%
Arden Group                       15.6%        14.2%
Indymac Bancorp                   15.3%        16.9%
Firstfed Financial                15.2%        14.8%
Jacobs Engineering Group          15.1%        15.9%
UTI Worldwide                     14.9%        9%
On Assignment                     14.6%        6.1%
Quaker City Bancorp               14.2%        16.5%
Countrywide Financial             14.1%        16.3%
Health Net                        14.1%        18.1%
THQ                               14%          32%
Semtech                           13.9%        10%
First American Bank               13.7%        9.1%
Flamemaster                       13.4%        12.2%
Hawthorne Financial               13.4%        14.7%
Foothill Indpt Bancorp            13.2%        13.4%
Ameron Intl                       13.1%        13.2%
Pacific Union Bank of California  13.1%        11.5%
Diagnostic Products               13%          14.6%
Public Storage                    13%          14.1%
IHOP                              12.8%        11.2%
Pacific Energeny Partners         12.8%        15.6%
Cheesecake Factory                12.7%        12.9%
Mattel                            12.2%        23%
Ducommun                          12.1%        8.2%
Summa Industries                  12%          7.8%
Southwest Water                   11.9%        9.8%
Fremont General                   11.7%        25.6%
Unocal                            11.5%        10%
GBC Bancorp                       22%          -2.8%
Image Entertainment               10.8%        -0.6%
Jakks Pacific                     10.6%        8.7%
Hilton Hotels                     10.5%        9.6%
PFF Bancorp                       10.4%        12.4%
Computer Sciences                 10.3%        9.5%
Mercury General                   10.2%        6%
Alexandria R.E Equities           10.2%        10.4%
American States Water             10%          9.5%
Electro Rent                      9.8%         5%
Natl Mercantile Bancorp           9.7%         -1%
First Retional Bancorp            9.7%         10.9%
Farmer Bros                       9.6%         8.2%
Sport Chalet                      9.5%         7%
Univision Communications          9.5%         5.6%
PS Business Parks                 9.5%         9.7%
Tetra Tech                        9.5%         7.7%
Guess                             9.2%         -6.8%
Worldwide Restaurant Concept      9%           8.1%
Kennedy-Wilson                    8.8%         9.8%
Diodes                            8.7%         10.1%
Anworth Mfg Asset                 8.7%         11.9%
Reliance Steel & Aluminum         8.5%         4.9%
Northrop Grumman                  8.5%         4.9%
Kilroy Realty                     8.3%         7.3%
Point.360                         8.3%         8.2%
Edelbrock                         7.7%         6.4%
Keystone Automotive Inds          7.4%         10.4%
Hi Shear Technology               7.1%         8.9%
Hemacare                          6.9%         -7.3%
Arden Realty                      6.6%         5.5%
Tag-it Pacific                    6.6%         8.1%
Intl Rectifier                    6.2%         4.6%
Rotonics Manufacturing            5.6%         8.4%
Vans                              5.3%         -1.3%
Pc Mall                           5.3%         15.4%
Broadway Financial                5.3%         8.5%
Reinhold Industries               5.2%         21%
Rehall Industries                 5%           -4.8%
Reading Intl                      4.9%         -8.7%
3D Sys                            4.3%         -1.7%
Intl Aluminum                     4.2%         0.9%
Disney                            4%           5.3%
OSI Systems                       3.9%         5.1%
Creative Computer Appl            3.8%         11.2%
Virco Manufacturing               3.8%         0.3%
VCA Antech                        3.8%         45%
Smart & Final                     3.2%         2.5%
Overture Services                 3.1%         24.1%
National Technical Sys            3%           3.2%
Electr Clearing House             2.9%         -17.6%
Scorpe Industries                 2.8%         17%
American Business Bank            2.8%         7.1%
Wesco Financial                   2.8%         2.7%
First Consulting Group            2.7%         1.8%
Zenith National Insurance         2.6%         0.3%
Bell Industries                   2.1%         -8%
Infonet Services                  2.1%         -1.2%
21st Century Ins Group            2%           -1.9%
Tarrant Apparel Group             2%           -1.1%
Variflex                          1.4%         -2.2%
North American Scientific         1.4%         -8.1%
Intl Remote Imaging Systems       1.3%         5.1%
Specialty Laboratories            1.2%         -10.8%
Tekelec                           0.9%         5.3%
Salem Communications              -0.5%        -1.2%
Activision                        -0.9%        11.1%
Taitron Components                -1.2%        -2.8%
Magnetek                          -1.8%        1%
Westminster Cap                   -2.8%        -4.3%
Hughes Electronics                -4.2%        -2.3%
Chad Therapeutics                 -4.6%        -4.3%
TBA Entertainment                 -5.1%        -1.1%
Alpha Technologies Group          -6.8%        -44.4%
Coastcast                         -7.2%        -28.3%
J2 Global Communications          -7.7%        24.9%
Unico American                    -8.6%        -8.4%
Trio Tech Intl                    -9.7%        -41.2%
SCPIE Holdings                    -9.7%        -16.9%
California Pizza Kitchen          -10.6%       11.4%
Valueclick                        -10.7%       -1.3%
Natrol                            -10.9%       1.9%
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer               -11%         -5.7%
IMPCO Technologies                -11.2%       -32.9%
Earl Scheib                       -12.2%       3.7%
JB Oxdford Holdings               -12.9%       -46.1%
Digital Insight                   -14.2%       -4.2%
En Pointe Technologies            -19%         -18.2%
Peerless Systems                  -20%         0.8%
Intergroup                        -20.4%       -34.9%
Unova                             -22.9%       0.6%
Korn Ferry International          -27.3%       -54.8%
Staar Surgical                    -28%         -56.2%
Calprop                           34%          -114.7%
ValCom                            -34.2%       NA
CytRx                             -37.4%       -77.6%
Stamps.Com                        -38.1%       -3.7%
Sports Club                       -45.3%       -59%
Entravision Communications        -50.1%       -1%
Merisel                           -50.3%       22%
MRV Communications                -61.3%       -118.7%
Cadiz                             -75.6%       -145.3%
Gemstar-TV Guide Intl             -78.9%       -249.9%
Netsol Technologies               -81.2%       -99.5%
Daily Journal                     -101.1%      25.2%
Youbet.Com                        -106.6%      -111.8%
Caminosoft                        -115.3%      -212.3%
US Search.Com                     -124.6%      123.3%
United Leisure                    -363.3%      -234.4
Ascent Media Group                -150%        -168.5%
Paula Financial                   -166.1%      18.3%
Ames Financial                    -17.3%       12.3%
Cherokee                          -202.6%      110.6%
Avenue Group                      -290.2%      -50.6%
Homestore                         -434%        -454.6%
Hartcourt Cos                     -464.7%      -382.1%
Mossimo                           -590.5%      101.4%

(1)ROE (return on equity) is calculated as net income equity; companies
that have negative common equity for any of the three years were not
included

Source: Duff & Phelps LLC