Perceptronics Has Year-End Profit

Perceptronics Inc. of Woodland Hills, which specializes in military systems, reported Monday that it made a profit in the fiscal year ended March 31.

The company also said it doubled revenue over the previous fiscal year, and announced a public offering of 400,000 shares at $7 each. The company also reported a record year-end backlog of $17 million in orders.

For the fiscal year, Perceptronics posted preliminary unaudited earnings of $340,000, or 19 cents a share, up from a loss of $1.2 million, or 70 cents a share, in fiscal 1984. The profit was the largest in its 16-year history, said David Nelson, the company’s vice president for finance. “We haven’t had a healthy profit margin,” he said.

Revenues in fiscal 1985 were a record $15.4 million, up 98% from the $7.75 million the previous year, the company reported.

Nelson blamed the loss in fiscal 1984 on the start-up of manufacturing for the company, which previously did only research and development.

Nelson said the numbers were unaudited because the underwriting firm of Rooney, Pace in New York was anxious to proceed with the public offering, and the audit was not done in time. He said the audit will be completed routinely, and that the company believes its numbers are accurate.

Nelson said the company will gross about $2.5 million, after fees, from the underwriting, and that Rooney also has 30 days to exercise an option for another 60,000 shares if sales warrant. Most of the proceeds will be used to repay bank loans and increase working capital, Nelson said.

Perceptronics does research and development on contract, mostly for the military. It also makes interactive video training systems for government and industry, including a system used in training tank gunners. The company also makes some personal-computer software.

Datametrics’ Net Income Falls 67% in 2nd Quarter

Datametrics Corp. reported a 67% drop in net income for the second quarter ended April 30, contrasted with the same period a year ago. Earnings were down to $101,587, or 3 cents a share.

The Chatsworth-based manufacturer of high-speed computer printers and plotters had record sales, however, of $4.4 million, up 51% from the same period in 1984.

For the first half of the year, Datametrics had sales of $7.6 million, up 30% from a year ago. Earnings for the period were $205,315, or 6 cents a share, down 64% from the first six months of fiscal year 1984. Increased marketing efforts and research and development costs were in part responsible for the losses, said Keet Johnson, chief financial officer.

Wilderness Experience Reports 2nd-Period Loss

Wilderness Experience, the Chatsworth manufacturer of outdoor equipment and garments, reported a loss of $255,100, or 5 cents a share, for its second quarter ended April 30. The company earned $46,300, or 1 cent a share, during the same period last year.

It was the second consecutive quarter the company lost money. For the first half of its fiscal year, Wilderness Experience lost $285,000, or 6 cents a share, down from a profit of $46,300, or 1 cent, during the same period a year ago.

The company reported sales of $1.7 million for the second quarter, a 15% increase over 1984.

Losses were due to lower sales than expected for the spring and fall, said Ted Weiland, vice president for finance.