Plasma & Materials Expects Loss

Plasma & Materials Technologies Inc. said it expects to report a fourth-quarter loss from operations because of slow demand for its chip-making equipment. It didn’t specify the size of the loss. The Chatsworth company blamed a slowdown in the industry for its sluggish sales. Analysts expected the company to have a profit of 3 cents a share in the quarter, excluding charges, compared with 10 cents in the year-ago quarter. Plasma & Materials also said it will take a charge of $89 million as a result of its purchase of Electrotech Group in November. Plasma shares lost $2.50 to close at $12.25 on the New York Stock Exchange.