McDonald Investments.

But Jacobs has hired two investment banking firms, Goldman Sachs Group and McDonald Investments, to identify buyers.

"Imports are not the primary issue facing the domestic steel industry," said Mark L. Parr, a steel analyst with McDonald Investments in Cleveland.

He is a stock research analyst with McDonald Investments, a broker-dealer in Manhattan.

Mr. Brennan, 30, is a bond salesman in Cleveland for McDonald Investments.

Christopher Manuel, an analyst at McDonald Investments, a Cleveland investment firm, said: "It shows sales right now are clearly driven by incentives to a large extent.

Affiliation: McDonald Investments (Board member in 1999 when contract was approved)

Thomas Morabito, an equity analyst at McDonald Investments in Cleveland, said that financing was the main concern about XO's future among investors.

There's a lot of uncertainty out there," said Justin Maurer, an analyst at McDonald Investments.

"Allen has a background that would fit that strategy," said Jeffrey Stein, a retail analyst with McDonald Investments.