Farmer bros. trading piques interest as shares hit high. (Wall Street West).

FARMER Bros. Co., the Torrance-based suzerainty of 85-year-old family scion Roy F. Farmer, long has been an enigma to investors. The coffee and food-products distributor is controlled by family insiders (Roy F. Farmer's father founded the company), and Farmer's has never even put out a press release, let alone granted interviews to analysts or reporters.

Recently, the mystery again deepened. On Dec. 28, Farmer Bros.' stock jumped to new all-time high of $267.75 a share, up $18.75, or 7.5 percent, on heavier-than-usual volume. Adding to the intrigue, almost all of the price spike and trading volume happened in the last hour of trading - often a sign of a powerful market minor (or imminent announcement) regarding the stock.

But what rumor? As usual, company officials were not talking last week. With no analyst coverage, Wall Street is largely clueless about Farmer Bros., which now boasts a market capitalization of more than $500 million. Reflecting Wall Street's disdain for secretive companies, Farmers Bros., despite years of profits and the potential for a company buyout in the not-too-distant future, sells for a mere 12 times earnings, less than half prevailing market averages.

One trader doubted that the Farmers were looking for a market cap surge. When Roy F. Farmer dies, estate taxes will have to be paid. The lower the market value, the less that will have to be ponied up. Unlike most public companies, Farmers does not look for ways to report higher profits, and often applies very conservative accounting principles to depress reported profits.

One money manager in Pasadena, bruised 15 years ago in an unsuccessful effort to win board seats at Farmers Bros., scoffed at the idea that Farmer would be leaving anytime soon. "He'll probably be in that office for another 10 years, sipping his coffee slowly every day," said the manager. "Very slowly."

Contributing columnist Benjamin Mark Cole writes about the local investment community for the Los Angeles Business Journal. His new book is "The Pied Pipers of Wall Street: How analysts Sell You down the River," published by Bloomberg Press.