Electronic Clearing House Reports Loss in Quarter

Electronic Clearing House Inc., an Agoura Hills provider of check- and credit-card clearing services and equipment, reported a fiscal first-quarter loss of $467,000, compared with a year-earlier loss of $247,000.

The latest loss in the quarter ended Dec. 31 came despite a 20% gain in ECH’s revenue, to $2.37 million from $1.97 million a year earlier. The loss reflected new-product development costs and certain one-time financing and sales expenses, the company said.

ECH said it received $1.4 million in additional orders from Integrated Payment Systems, a unit of American Express Co., for terminals and printers used with machines that dispense money orders and aid utility-bill payments.