BROOKE'S Q3 UP 71% FROM A YEAR AGO:

Overland Park, Kan.-based agency franchise network Brooke Corp. saw its third-quarter profit jump to $1.4 million, or 14 cents per diluted share, up 71 percent from last year’s $822,000, or 8 cents per diluted split adjusted share. Quarterly revenues increased 48 percent to $26.1 million in the third quarter of 2004, up from $17.7 million in the third quarter of 2003. CEO Robert D. Orr attributed the earnings uptick to fees from consulting on the acquisition, conversion and start-up of new franchise locations.