AMERICAN CAN <AC> SEES HIGHER YEAR NET American Can Co chairman Gerald Tsai said the company will record higher earnings in the first quarter and for the full year. Addressing analysts, Tsai said "First quarter results have been extremely encouraging and results for all of 1987 will show significant improvement over 1986." American Can earned 196.3 mln dlrs, or 3.21 dlrs per share, adjusted for a two-for-one stock split, in 1986. In the 1986 first quarter, the company reported net income of 67.5 mln dlrs, including one-time gains from sale of assets, or 2.30 dlrs per share, before the stock adjustment. In the 1987 first quarter, American Can will record a one-time gain of 28 cts per share from the sale of shares in its Musicland Group subsidiary. The gain is slightly higher than the expected gain the company predicted in February because additional shares of the unit were sold. In response to a question, Tsai said American Can's investment in Jefferies and Co is "very small". "We treat it as just another passive investment," he said. According to press reports, American Can owns 20 pct of Jefferies and is its largest single shareholder. Yesterday, Boyd Jefferies, chairman and founder of the brokerage firm bearing his name, resigned from the firm and said he would plead guilty to two felony charges for breaking securities laws. Responding to another question, Tsai said AIDS-related claims were a small portion of claims made with American Can's insurance subsidiaries in 1986.