NEW DIVIDEND: Cheesecake Factory Inc. announced late today it would start paying a quarterly dividend of 12 cents a share next month. The Calabasas restaurant chain also reported second-quarter net income of $28.4 million (52 cents a share), 15 percent higher than in the same period a year earlier and above the 49 cents a share Wall Street consensus. Revenue rose 5.5 percent to $455 million.

STUDIES COMMENCE: Shares of CytRx Corp. closed up 18 percent to $4.42 today and added 6.5 percent in Nasdaq after-hours trading after the West L.A. biotech company announced it started a mid-stage clinical trial for its cancer-fighting treatment.

EARNINGS BOOST: Shares of Skechers USA gained 11 percent in Nasdaq after-hours trading on second quarter results that beat Wall Street estimates. The Manhattan Beach shoe company reported a net loss of $1.8 million, (7 cents a share). Revenue fell 1 percent to $384 million.

EARNINGS MISS: Ryland Group Inc. late today said new home orders jumped 42 percent in the second quarter, but the Westlake Village homebuilder’s second-quarter results still fell short of analysts’ estimates. Net income was $6.3 million (14 cents per share), compared with a net loss of $10.7 million (-24 cents) in the same period a year earlier. Revenue rose 39 percent to $294 million. The Wall Street consensus was for profit of 15 cents a share on revenue of nearly $298 million.

LAND PURCHASE: Limoneira Co. announced late today that it signed an agreement to acquire 230 acres of agriculture property in the San Joaquin Valley for $1.3 million. The Santa Paula agribusiness said the new orchards should ultimately capable of producing about 1,000 cartons of lemons per acre. The deal is expected to close next month.