PDA Reports 43.6% Drop in Net for First Quarter

PDA Engineering of Santa Ana reported net earnings of $258,000 for the first quarter of its 1987 fiscal year, down 43.6% from the $458,000 recorded a year ago. At the same time, total revenue for the period ended Sept. 30 was up 38% to $4.9 million from $3.5 million a year earlier.

The software and engineering services company said its software products division accounted for 58% of the first-quarter revenue, compared with 60% a year earlier. Division revenue, however, was up 34% from the same quarter last year. The engineering services and products division accounted for almost 42% of the company’s total revenue, compared with 40% for the first quarter of fiscal 1986. Revenue for the division jumped 44%.

Company officials attributed the downturn in net income to increased marketing costs and the cost of adding four sales offices during the first six months of calendar 1986.

Sales also shifted in the past quarter toward new--but less lucrative--government contract work by PDA’s engineering services division, with fewer sales by the software products section, which works on a higher profit margin.

PDA became a publicly traded company in January, 1985.