Sunrise Medical Expects Drop in ’98 Earnings

Sunrise Medical Inc. said it expects that the consolidation of its U.S. and European offices and conversion to a new computer system will trim 60 cents to 65 cents a share from fiscal 1998 earnings, putting it below its year-earlier results. For the year ended June 30, the Carlsbad-based company had net income of $10.6 million, or 55 cents a share, on sales of $656.7 million. The maker of walking aids, electric wheelchairs and power-lift chairs said it increased its estimate of total restructuring charges for the fiscal year ending June 1998 to the range of $19 million to $21 million, from an earlier forecast of $13 million. The company also said it will close its Personal Care Products factory in Simi Valley by June and move the manufacturing of all its Guardian product lines to Tijuana, where it has been operating in a temporary facility since February. The company’s shares rose 50 cents to close at $16.13 on the NYSE.