Morehouse Industries Reports $31,000 Net Loss

Cutting its losses in half, Morehouse Industries Inc. of Fullerton reported a net loss of $31,000 for the first fiscal quarter ended Nov. 30, compared with a $69,300 loss in the same quarter last year.

Morehouse, meantime, said it has sued a competitor, Armenco of Paramount, accusing the firm of infringing on a Morehouse patent on a design feature in its line of dispersion equipment. Morehouse makes the equipment used to mix dry chemicals with liquids to form such products as paint and magnetic tape coatings.

The complaint, filed in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles after settlement attempts failed, seeks unspecified damages for past infringement as well as an injunction against further infringement.

Despite a slump in the industry, Morehouse has increased sales to just over $1 million in the quarter, 38.6% more than the $752,900 in sales recorded for the same quarter last year.

For its fiscal year ended Aug. 31, the company showed a similar pattern, cutting its losses to $106,100 from a $679,600 loss in fiscal 1984. Revenues for the year were $4 million, up from $3.6 million in the previous fiscal year.