William C. Markham, president and chief executive...

William C. Markham, president and chief executive officer of Antelope Valley Newspapers Inc., earlier this month purchased the shares of Richard Lamont Odett Jr., bringing an end to the Odett family’s partial ownership in the corporation.

Both sides declined to say how many shares were sold and at what price. The company publishes the Antelope Valley Press.

Previously, the Markham family owned the Valley News, predecessor of the Daily News, which they sold to the Tribune Co. In 1985, the Tribune Co. sold the Daily News to financier Jack Kent Cooke.

* Alexander Papakyriakou has resigned as chief operating officer of Kenfil Inc. to pursue other interests, the company announced. Peter S. H. Grubstein, director of the company, was appointed acting chief operating officer.

Van Nuys-based Kenfil distributes microcomputer software and carries more than 3,500 software titles from 300 software publishers.

* A Castaic stockbroker has been disciplined by the National Assn. of Securities Dealers (NASD), the self-regulatory organization for the Nasdaq and over-the-counter securities markets.

Robert Keith Malkin was suspended for 30 days from association with any NASD member, and he is required to re-qualify for membership by taking an exam.

Without admitting or denying guilt, Malkin consented to the disciplinary actions and to the finding that he recommended a customer buy securities without having “reasonable grounds for believing such recommendations were suitable for the customer in view of the size of the transactions and the customer’s financial situation and needs,” the NASD said.

* Vitesse Semiconductor Corp. in Camarillo said it appointed Eugene F. Hovanec as vice president of finance and chief financial officer of the company, a maker of digital gallium arsenide chips for commercial and military use.

Hovanec was previously the chief financial officer at Digital Sound Corp., and before that vice president and controller for Microplis Corp., a Chatsworth maker of disk drives.