Wavetek’s board of directors last week adopted...

Wavetek’s board of directors last week adopted a “poison pill” to protect the company from a takeover after word that a large, New York-based shareholder might soon sell its 20.35% interest in the San Diego-based company that manufactures electronic test and measurement products.

Shufro, Rose & Ehrman, a New York investment firm, in May reported in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing that it would sell its 20.35% stake in Wavetek--if the stock sale could be accomplished in a single transaction at a premium over the stock’s current market price.

Wavetek, which traded at about $11 before last October’s market crash, since has traded at about $7. Shufro evidently began accumulating Wavetek stock about three years ago.

Wavetek’s board adopted a “shareholder rights package” that Chief Executive John W. Battin said “should encourage anyone seeking to acquire the company to negotiate with the board prior to attempting a takeover.”

Wavetek’s rights package is “intended to enable all Wavetek stockholders to realize the long-term value of their investment in the company,” Battin said.

The San Diego-based company recently reported that net income increased by 34%, to $984,000, for the second quarter ended April 1, up from $733,000 during the corresponding quarter a year ago. Revenue rose by 21%, to $22.9 million, up from $18.9 million a year earlier.