Wavetek Corp. in the Red $14.3 Million for Year

As expected, Wavetek Corp., attempting to restructure and return to profitability, on Tuesday said that it lost $14.3 million for the fiscal year ended Sept. 28.

The company reported a profit last year of $1.4 million.

Revenues for the year dropped 7.5% to $75.4 million.

The loss includes $10.3 million from the sale of three product lines during the fourth quarter, as well as the cancellation earlier this year of the electronic test and measurement equipment manufacturer’s option to buy the Digelec group.

In addition, the loss includes write-downs of obsolete inventory and reserves for inventory that is valued in “excess of current operating rates,” the company said.

In the fourth quarter, Wavetek reported a $12.8-million loss, contrasted with a loss of $474,000 in the comparable period last year. Sales dropped 21% to $16.7 million.

The write-downs “complete the restructuring started earlier this year,” according to John W. Battin, president and chief executive. The reorganization is designed to return the company to profitability in early fiscal 1986, he added.

Wavetek’s loss had been predicted by officials all year while the company was attempting to regroup in the midst of sluggish government orders and a slowdown in the cable-television industry.

Harry Kohli, an analyst with Sutro & Co. in San Francisco, said Tuesday that Wavetek’s write-downs represent a “cleaning up” by Battin. “He wants to start fresh, with a smaller-size company that grows faster. The losses are preparing the company for greater strength in the coming year.”